Broken Hearts and Lost Souls
by Izzy DeAngelo
Summary: Starts before "Rose" Rose has, had dreams every year for as long as she can remember. She doesn't understand any of her dreams, and nor can she remember them clearly. How will this effect Rose and the Doctor's relationship? I don't own Doctor Who.
1. One lost soul

Broken Hearts and Lost Souls

Chapter 1

One of the Lost Souls

By: Izzy

"Mother!" a fiery red headed woman yelled as she stormed through a large castle with marble tiles and pillars. The castle was all white with portraits of the royal family hanging on the walls. "Mother!" She had an angry look upon her face as she continued her search for her mother. "Mother! If you do not come and face me I will tare this place down piece by piece!" She found herself in the throne room where a elegant blond sat upon a throne.

"What have I told you, about storming through the castle screaming your head off?" the woman on the throne said.

"What is the meaning of this?!" the red head exclaimed.

"Crimson, I have told you to lower your voice," the woman on the throne said.

"Forgive me my Queen," Crimson said bitterly. "But why have you not sent troops to aid our allies in this war against the Daleks?"

"That is not a war," the queen said bitterly. "It's a slaughter."

"Not if we go help the Time Lords," Crimson urged. "We have to help!"

"No!" the queen said firmly. "My sisters and I, have spoken."

"But Mother!" Crimson tried again. "At least send me-" She stopped talking when the queen stood up and glared at Crimson.

"Crimson Rose Moon, I forbid you and any other Kiwaka from helping the Time Lords!" the queen bellowed. "Do I make myself perfectly clear?"

"Crystal," Crimson said sadly. She stormed out of the throne room and back to her own room. She flopped down on her bed and huffed. "Why can't I get her to see?"

"Perhaps you are going about it wrong?" a male voice said from behind her. She spun around to see a tall man with long dark red hair, he had wings and a long tail. He stood 8 foot tall and barely fit through the door. He had dark red skin but only wore a loincloth. The Queens had asked him to put more clothes on, but he was a rebel.

"Uncle Shadow!" she exclaimed happily as she jumped into his arms. "Is Aunt Ash with you?"

"No," he said. "She is against the war too." She pulled away. "I will be fighting."

"But if Aunt Ash is against it-" she started but was cut off by a large finger being pressed to her lips.

"I'm going as King of the Shadō shurui," he said. She looked as if she were going to cry. "Come on now, warriors don't cry." He pulled her tiny frame into a tight hug. "Go speak to Fenrir. He has a plan to get the Queens to see that the war is unavoidable." She sniffed.

The Kiwaka were ruled by three queens. They were all sisters. Every generation had a set of triples and they were destined to be the Queens of the Kiwaka. And so far there weren't another set of triples. Which meant if her mother died before a set of triples was born she would amuse the throne. The Queens made decisions together, as a unit. Though if one disagreed with the other two, the one that disagreed with it had to live with the decision.

"OK, Uncle Shadow," she said as he put her back down.

"Your father would be so proud of you," he said before he bent down and walked back out of her room. Her thoughts drifted to what she could remember about her father, he had died when she was only a child. He was a Time Lord. Not a very strong or important one, but a Time Lord none the less. Which is one of the reasons she couldn't understand her mother's stand on the future of Gallifrey. That planet was her father's home. The treaty between the two races was her father's doing. She knew her mother still loved her father, she often found her mother in the Type 40 he loved so much. Drax was her father's name.

She knew her father would want her to help his Time Lord brothers and sisters. He was a good man. She formed a plan in her head. She would steal her father's Type 40 and go to Gallifrey on her own. Even if she was stripped of her title and name she would defend her father's people. But without her name she could do very little. To the Kiwaka, names were everything, because their names were given to them by the Gods. Their power came from their names. If she said her full name and title she could bend reality around her. She could do anything her heart willed, but the everyone in the royal family could feel the fabric of reality. Every reality. So if she wanted to make it to Gallifrey without being stripped of her name she would have to steal her father's Type 40.

She grabbed her scythe, walked out her door and locked the door behind her. She took a deep breath and held on to her scythe as if it would give her strength. It seemed to work because she walked to her mother's room and slowly opened the door. She looked around to make sure her mother hadn't returned. The room was empty aside from the furniture and marble pillar that didn't belong in the room. She moved to her mother's dresser and opened the top drawer then reached in to get the key. The key was in a secret compartment. She got the key then ran to the pillar where she put the key in and a door swung open. She smiled at the familiar hum of the old Type 40. She could remember her father working on it as she would color pictures for him.

She sighed trying to push the memories of her father aside so she could do what she had to do. She had read the manual for the Type 40 so many times she could fly it in her sleep. She flipped the switches and pulled levers. The ship moaned and groaned from not being used in hundreds of years. But she knew this was the best thing for the universe. She had to help the Time Lords, her father's people. No, not her father's people, her people. She gripped the scythe tightly. She parked the Type 40 perfectly. She got out of it and reported to the commanding officer. They sent her to the front lines.

She fought for years. She killed many Daleks and helped as many Gallifreians as she could. She was getting tired of the bloodshed on both sides. She would sing songs from her home at night, the children loved to gather around her as she sang. She missed home. She was a warrior, but she was also a princess. She wanted a warm bed, and a proper shower. But she had the resolve to finish this. She would help end this. Even if she had to use her power to erase the Daleks from the universe forever. She knew the Queens would frown about that and really strip her of her name and title. She frowned at the thought of her mother. Even if they had a difference in opinion about the Time War, she still missed her mother.

"Ma'am," a solider approached her.

"Report," she commanded. She had gained the rank of Major in the short time she had been fighting.

"Major, we have reports that say: the Daleks are advancing on Arcadia," he said. "We are to report there immediately."

"Send a message back, we are on our way!" she announced as she stood grabbing her scythe as she stood. In this war the Daleks had dubbed her the Grim Reaper. She laughed when a Time Lord told her what they meant by that. And she had told them that if that's what it took to end the war, she would be their Grim Reaper.

The march to Arcadia was a long one, but her troops were just as determined as she was. That was her terms when she accepted the rank of Major, she wanted to lead a crew that was just as determined as she was. By the time they reached Arcadia the battle was in full swing. She ripped through four Daleks with one swing of her scythe. Her troops fired their blasters at the Daleks. She was mowing down the Daleks like they were weeds in and unruly yard. She commanded her troops to save the civilians as she focused on the Daleks. But as she looked over the battlefield she saw her troops get slaughtered by Dalek reinforcements. She looked at their dead bodies in horror. She lost control, she ran wildly at the Daleks and killed a lot of them but in her rage she didn't watch her back. It was warrior 101. Watch your back. Well a Dalek came up behind her and shot her through one of her hearts. She was thrown to the ground by the force.

She started to regenerate, she knew the Dalek would shoot her again to finish the job but it didn't nothing happened. Even her regeneration stopped. She couldn't move. She wondered if this was what it was like to die. "You're not dead," her mother's voice said.

"Mother?" she asked weakly.

"Yes it is I. You disobeyed me." the queen said sternly but not like she was angry, more like she was scolding a child.

"I know," Crimson said. "And I'm sorry, but I just wanted to help them." She winced from the pain in her chest. "They're Father's people."

"I know," the queen said mournfully. "I love the Time Lords, but I was trying to protect you." Crimson felt bad for disobeying her mother but what could she do? The Time Lords were dying. "But I understand." The queen took a deep breath. "I'm going to use my power to turn you into an infant and place you on Earth."

"Why?" Crimson asked. "Why Earth?"

"Your destiny in on Earth," the queen said sadly. "You won't remember any of this." Tears began to stream down her face. "I love you my dear Crimson." Crimson's consciousness faded.

* * *

Rose Tyler woke up as her alarm blared. She groaned as she rolled over and slammed her hand down on her alarm. "That dream again," she whispered as she sat up. She sighed. Every year she had the same dream. And the weirdest bit was that it was always around her birthday, either day before or days after. She could never remember the details of it. She could remember images from the dream but never the details. She got dressed quickly, grabbed a piece of toast, then stopped in the living room. "Love you, Mum." She kissed Jackie on the cheek.

"Love you," Jackie said. "Be careful." Rose started to walk out but stopped and turned back to Jackie.

"I won't be back until late tonight," Rose said. "Mickey and I are going to the pub tonight."

"There is a game on tonight isn't there?" Jackie asked and both women laughed.

"Bye, Mum," Rose said as she dashed out the door. It wasn't true she wasn't going to the pub with Mickey but she used her best friend as an excuse for going on a long walk to try and clear her head of the dream. She sighed. She wished she could talk to her mother about it but the last time Rose tried Jackie sent Rose to a psychiatrist. The psychiatrist told Jackie that Rose had these dreams because she was subconsciously rejecting the fact that she was adopted, making a elaborate story up for attention. Jackie got mad and fired one after another. Rose went through seven different psychiatrists before she just found it easier to stop telling her mother about the dreams.

Rose walked to her job at Henrik's. She pushed through the day, it was boring. She disliked her boring live, sometimes she wished she could live in her dreams. A life of happiness and adventure. She just wanted something to happen in her life. She sighed as she watched the time. An hour until lunch. She folded some clothes, washed windows, sorted the cash drawer, and even sorted the office all before lunch. On her lunch break she called Mickey.

"Hi Mick," she said when he answered.

"Rose," he said sounding serious. "You can't use me as an excuse every time you have a dream. Just tell her you're havin' 'em again."

"Yeah," she said. "And watch her lock me up in the loony bin this time. No thank you!"

"Rose," he said. "She's your mum."

"I know that," she said. "It's just, she doesn't understand." There was a long pause.

"How can she if you don't talk to her about it?" he asked breaking the silence.

"She'd never understand," she said sounding defeated.

"Whatever, Rose," he said with a loud sigh. "See ya."

"Bye, Mick," she said sadly as she hung up the phone. She finished her lunch. They had dated at one point but their difference in opinion on what life should be like drove them to be just friends again. He wanted a normal domestic life and she wanted adventure. Shortly after they broke up she found Jimmy Stone. She moved out with him before she could get her A levels. He showed his true colors and tried to make her do things she wasn't ready for. So she came back home.

The rest of the day dragged on like every other day. She got complements from the boss, to which she only smiled and said her thanks. She didn't like her job, but if she was going to go see the world, she needed the money. She walked around London after she got off work. She wandered around with no real destination in mind. She justed looked at the beauty of London at night. And it was beautiful, even though she had lived here her whole life she could still see it's beauty. Mickey would laugh at her when she would say something along those lines. She wandered around the Hyde park and sat on a bench. She breathed in and out slowly. She tried to recall her dream.

She got flashes that didn't make sense. A scythe, a dog, and large pepper shaker with a plunger. She growled in frustration. Maybe the dreams was someone or something trying to tell her something. But what? She sighed and leaned back lying her head back. She closed her eyes and cleared her mind the best she could. Suddenly she saw something a little clearer than she had seen anything else, a blue police box. Her eyes shot open and she sat up fully again. But what could it mean?

"I figured I'd find you here," Mickey's voice came from behind her. She turned to see him carrying some take out. "I didn't think you'd eaten."

"Not since lunch," she said as she made room for him on the bench. "Thanks, Mick."

"Were you trying to remember?" he asked as he sat down on the bench with her.

"Yeah," she said as she reached into the back and pulled out some fries. "Chips!" She dug into them.

"Have you ever thought that, maybe you're not meant to remember?" he asked as he took his own fries and fish from the bag.

"But I remember a little more as the years pass," she said with her mouth full.

"What do you remember?" he asked as he took a bite of his food. She shallowed.

"I remember a dog, a scythe, and some weird pepper pot things," she said. "But just before you came up I remembered a blue police box." She smiled as she took another bite.

"A blue police box?" he asked.

"Yeah," she said. "I know it sounds crazy."

"No, no, it sounds sane," he teased. "After all they have them on every street corner."

"Oi!" she exclaimed. "Shut it!" She playfully hit his arm. They laughed. After they finished their dinner he drove her home. When she got in the house Jackie was asleep, so she let herself in with her key and she got a glass of warm milk before going to her room to get ready for bed. She just wished she could get a bigger clue to why she was having these dreams and why she couldn't remember them in clarity. Well that was for another day. She fell asleep fairly quickly. Little did she know that soon someone would help shed some light on her cloudy dreams.

* * *

**Notes: Hello! I'm trying something a little different for me. I'm not rewriting the season 1 for the most part I'm doing the before and in the middle bits. Tell me what'ca think. Anyway plz read and review! Side note, I didn't know that Kiwaka was a game until after I had named the race that. Just a coincidence.**


	2. One Broken Heart

Chapter 2

One Broken Heart

By: Izzy

"Crimson!" her father shouted as he ran up to a very young Crimson, only the age of three.

"Herosa!" Crimson shouted back. The little girl ran straight into her father's arms. He held on to her like she was the most precious being in the universe. (Herosa means dad)

"How's my little Rose?" he asked.

"I fine Herosa," she said. "How you Herosa?"

"Better now that I have seen my little Rose," he said as he tickled her. She giggled.

"You big flirt!" she said as she giggled and slapped him lightly on his arm. He laughed. He picked her up and put her on his shoulders.

"I wanted to take you to Gallifrey," he said. Her eyes lit up with delight.

"I go nasaroca of Time Lords," she squealed happily. He carried her into his Type 40. He put her down and set a course for Gallifrey. She ran around the seemingly endless halls of the Type 40. She loved to open random doors just to see what was inside. The Type 40 hummed lightly in her mind. She loved how it felt. Her father had told her it was because she had a natural connection to his Type 40. She wondered if it was all Type 40s or only his. Even though she was only 3 and couldn't speak proper English, or speak her mother's language, she was clever. She already knew all about the history of both of the species she was born from. ( Nasaroca means home or place of orgin)

She even understood her role in both societies. She was the daughter of one of the Queens of the Kiwaka and the daughter of a renegade Time Lord. That meant that she wasn't well liked on Gallifrey but loved and respected on Domus. Her father had promised that after things calmed down a bit on Gallifrey, that he would take her there. And he was keeping his promise. She bounced around excitedly.

"Rose!" he called from the console room. He had always called her Rose because he told her that she was beautiful just like a rose. She knew what a rose looked like because when she was born he went to Earth and planted a rose bush in the courtyard of the castle.

"Comin' Herosa!" she said as she ran back to the console room with some help from the Type 40, she was there in no time. "We here?"

"Yes," he said. "We're on Gallifrey." He scooped her up and carried her outside of the Type 40. She was blown away by how beautiful Gallifrey was. And the suns rose just as they stepped out so the leaves caught the sunshine just right, making the forest look like it's on fire. She watched in amazement. He smiled at her. The suns were past the point that made the forest look like it was on fire, so she looked around a bit more.

"Red grass," she said with a giggle.

"Well," he said. "Imagine how I felt when I first saw your white grass."

"Herosa?" she asked.

"Yes?" he responded.

"Where you live?" she asked.

"I don't have a nasaroca," he said. "I'm a renegade Time Lord remember?"

"No," she said. "When you my age!"

"Oh," he said. "There." He pointed to the Citadel that was in cased in a glass dome.

` "So pretty," she said. "Why I no visit grands?"

"Sadly your grandparents don't want anything to do with us," he said sadly.

"They lose!" she said proudly. "My Herosa brilliant!" He hugged her tightly then carried her back inside the Type 40. He sat her down again and let her run amok in the ship. He smiled at her as she ran off.

Two years later: "Your Majesty!" a solider said as he burst into the throne room. He ran up to the queen and bowed. "I have grave news to report." Crimson sat on the steps of the throne room playing with a time rotor her father had given her to fix.

"Stand and continue," the queen commanded. He stood and tried not to look the queen in the eyes.

"Ma'am," he said. "Atrios was invaded."

"What?!" she yelled. "By who?"

"Daleks ma'am," he said. "The Time Lord known as Drax was found in the ruins of one of the cities." She fell to her knees, her body shook with sadness. Crimson was in shock. She couldn't believe it. Her father was dead. Why? Why him? A hatred for the Daleks formed that day. She vowed that she would destroy the Daleks, even if it took the rest of her life. She would bring about their destruction not just for her father but for the sake of the universe.

"Crimson," the queen said. "Do not hate, them for killing your father." She got up and scooped up the five year old into her arms then sat down on the throne. "Daleks hate. Never hate."

"Dacka Milua!" Crimson said. Her English had gotten much better, but since the Kiwaka usually spoke their native language she was used to talking to everyone in their native tongue. Although the queen and Drax insisted that Crimson speak to them in English. "Mecka raceue."(Dacka means but/although)

"English," the queen reminded her. Crimson sighed.

"We must get revenge!" she declared.

"My Hamuka," the queen said with sorrow heavy in her voice. "Revenge only breeds hatred. It's an endless cycle." She held on to Crimson tightly. "Please Crimson don't seek out the Daleks." The young girl remained quiet. "Promise me!" (Hamuka means precious, delicate, or fragile, but in this statement it is precious.)

"Jesuecka, Milua," she said. The queen gave Crimson a pointed look. "I swear, Milua. I will never seek them out." She got out of her mother's lap and went to her room. She closed the door and cursed the Daleks with every dirty word she could think of in both languages she knew.

* * *

Rose woke up slowly, she remembered the dream this time clearly. And it was strange that she had two dreams in two days. She thought maybe it had something to do with her sleeping on the TARDIS. Time Lords. The Doctor was a Time Lord. Maybe he could answer some of the questions she had. But what if he thought she was crazy for asking questions. Or what if he threw her out for not telling him once he found out? She sighed in frustration. She looked at the clock the TARDIS had provided her. It was only eleven PM. She sighed again, she had only slept three hours. She put a robe on and walked out of her room into the kitchen. Maybe a cup of tea would help. She was busy fixing a cup of tea, when the Doctor entered the room behind her.

"You didn't sleep long," he said.

"Couldn't sleep," she said. "I had a dream." She continued to make her tea. She heard his leather jacket shift, she knew he was uncomfortable. "I don't need to talk about it." She turned with her made tea and sat at the table.

"If you need me to take you home, I can," he said.

"No," she said with a smile. "I didn't have a dream about the world blowing up or anything like that." She sipped her tea and he sat down.

"But you seem rattled by it," he said as an observation. She sighed, she knew if she spent any amount of time with him she would have to tell him about her dreams but she just wasn't ready yet.

"It confused me is all," she said dismissively. "I'm gonna try and get some more sleep, night Doctor." She got up and let the room before he could say anymore. She got to her room and leaned against it and sighed again. She was going to need to be more careful from now on unless she really wants him to know about her dreams. She went back to bed and then to sleep fairly quickly.

* * *

Crimson was eight now. She had to do what all young Time Lords and Ladies did. Even though she wasn't full Time Lady she still showed more promise then most full Time Lords and Ladies at her age. She approached the eye and looked into it. She saw into eternity. Every moment of every day. She was inspired and empowered by it. The Time Lord council were so impressed that they wanted her to attend the Academy.

She wanted to know more about being a Time Lady so she attended the Academy with her mother's blessing. She was at the top of her class, in everything. Temporal Physics, Mechanical Engineering, Universal Theories, and History of the Universe. She took every class she could and aced them all. She graduated top of her class at the age of 20. Which for a Time Lord was a big feet because it usually took 50 years to graduate. She was offered many jobs by the Time Lord council. A seat on the council, Chief engineer, a teaching spot at the Academy, and finally Presidency. She turned them all down, because she wanted to go back to Domus. Back to her mother.

She went back to Domus, and started to train to be a warrior with her uncle, Shadow. He was a tough teacher but he was always fair. He taught her everything he knew about fighting. She finished his training at the age of 30. Everyone was impressed by her rate of learning and by her abilities. She hadn't chosen a Time Lady name. Because that name was like a promise you make to yourself. And while she had a lot of goals in mind she didn't want to share any of them with the rest of the universe. She wanted to avenge her father's death, protect the universe, and she also wanted with all her heart to find her imprint. After she completed her training she took her place as the Princess of the Kiwaka.

Imprinting is the the act of finding your soul mate, you can feel it when you find them. It happens in an instant, just one touch and the Kiwaka knows without a shred of doubt, that they are their imprint. But imprints were not just lovers, sometimes they became great friends or family. Though one thing is the same the imprinted couples were closer than anyone else. Though sadly only one in ten Kiwaka find their imprint. Her mother and father were an imprinted couple, so was her Uncle Shadow and Aunt Ash, but the third queen of the Queens of the Kiwaka, didn't have a husband or an imprint.

Crimson hoped with all her heart that her imprint would be a husband or wife, not a friend or family. The Gods knew she had too much of both. She wanted someone to love her for her not for her abilities or her birthright. But she also knew she had to fill a void in her mind. Bonding, it was the Time Lord's form of marriage, but unlike the human's marriage, bonding was permanent. Bonding with an imprint would be an intense experience. She couldn't wait.

* * *

Rose woke up again. She sighed she could remember all of this dream too, even though it was like watching a show that fast forwards a lot. But she still remembered it all. She found a notebook sitting on the end table beside her with a note that said; 'Rose, It might help to write your dreams down in this notebook. Doctor.' She smiled at the notebook. She wrote down the last to dreams and also the clues she could always remember. The scythe, the dog, the pepper shaker and the blue box. Wait blue box! It was the Doctor's TARDIS. But what does the Doctor have to do with her dreams. She stood up and resolved to talk to the Doctor about it as soon as possible. She walked to the console room where he was bouncing around.

"Good that you're here," he said. "Hold that down." That talk that was going to have to wait. She sighed and did as she was told.

After their adventure, with the Gelth and Charles Dickens, she wasn't tired so she reviewed the notebook. She wished she wasn't such a coward, and just asked the Doctor about her dreams. She wrote down the words of the Kiwaka people she had heard. But as she wrote more came to her mind as if she knew these things all her life; Herosa – informal form of father like 'Da' or 'Dad', Nasaroca – home or place of origin, Dacka – but/although, Mecka – we must, Raceue – get revenge, Hamuka – precious, delicate, or fragile, Jesuecka – I swear or I promise, Mahara – hello, Milua – formal form of mother, Reluca – informal form of mother like saying 'mom' or 'mum', Mebciua – queen, Drecua – king, Narici – unwelcome outsider or outcast, Dirauca – child born with unwed parents, Heuca – doctor or nurse, Daleca - calling someone love or darling, Pusica – addressed from or to, Everoca – dreams, Mahaku – diary or journal. Where all the words that came to mind. So the Doctor in Crimson's native tongue would be Heuca. So on the front of the note book she wrote 'Everoca mahaku pusica Heuca', which meant 'Dream diary from the Doctor'. She wanted to see if he knew the language. She walked into the console room where he was.

"Mahara Heuca," she said. He looked at her confused.

"What language was that?" he asked as he got back to work on the repairs. So he didn't know it. She shallowed hard, she needed a cover, because while she did want to know if he knew about the Kiwaka people, something inside her didn't want her to tell him just yet.

"It's a language a friend made up," she said as a cover.

"What'd you say?" he asked as he worked.

"Hello, Doctor," she said.

"Ah, so mahara is hello and Heuca is doctor?" he asked.

"Yes," she said. "But I didn't learn all of the words she came up with only a few."

"Like?" he asked.

"Well Jesuecka is I swear or I promise," she started trying to think of words that she knew that he would like or use. "Hamuka is precious, delicate, or fragile." They sat in the console room talking about the language for hours. He seemed interested in it. But she was starting to get the feeling that he would be interested in anything she talked about. Maybe it was time for a trip home, to see Jackie and Mickey. "Heuca."

"Yes," he responded.

"I want to go nasaroca," she said. She watched him stiffen. "Just for a visit." He relaxed a bit was still a little stiff.

"All right," he said as he got up and flipped switches sending them to the Powell Estate. They landed fairly quickly as if the TARDIS was used to the trip. She found it strange on two accounts, one, because he had only been to her place once, and two how could she know that, that was the reason they landed so smoothly? She shook her had lightly and went out the doors. He followed her out.

"How long have I been gone?" she said as she turned around to face him.

"About twelve hours," he said confidently.

"Oh. Right," she said. "I won't be long. I just want to see my mum." She felt something was off but couldn't put her finger on it, but something wasn't right. She tried her best to shove the feeling aside.

"What're you going to tell her?" he asked. Oh, she couldn't pass up this opportunity.

"I don't know," she said trying to sound serious. "I've been to the year 5 billion and only been gone, what, twelve hours?" She guessed that she was successful, because of the look on his face. "No, I'll just tell her I spent the night at Shareen's. See you later." She turned and started to walk away but stopped and turned back to look at him. She pointed at him. "Oh, don't you disappear." He nodded, so she turned back and started to walk to the apartment. She got inside, she dropped her keys on the table in the hallway. "I'm back! I was with Shareen. She was all upset again. Are you in?" She walked to the living room still seeing no sign of Jackie. "So, what's been going on?" Jackie walked in with wide eyes and looking like she'd been through hell. "How've you been? What? What's that face for? It's not the first time I've stayed out all night." She dropped her mug.

"It's you," she said as tears began to roll down her face.

"Of course it's me," Rose said.

"Oh, my God," Jackie said. "It's you. Oh my God." She hugged Rose and that's when Rose saw the missing posters.

"It's not twelve hours, it's twelve months," the Doctor said as he ran into the apartment. "You've been gone a whole year. Sorry." Jackie called the cops and then looked Rose in the eyes.

"Where have you been?!" Jackie asked.

"Traveling," Rose responded simply.

"Traveling?!" Jackie asked. "With him?"

"Yeah," Rose said.

"Tell me the truth, Rose!" Jackie angrily exclaimed.

"I am!" Rose exclaimed. There was a knock at the door. Jackie left to answer it. Rose plopped down in a huff on the sofa. The Doctor stood behind her almost protectively. The cop sat in the sofa across from Rose and Jackie paced.

"The hours I've sat here, days and weeks and months, all on my own!" Jackie exclaimed. "I thought you were dead! And where were you?! Traveling! What the hell does that mean, traveling?! That's no sort of answer! You ask her." She commanded the cop. "She won't tell me. That's all she says. Traveling." she rolled her eyes.

"That's what I was doing," Rose defended.

"When your passport's still in the drawer?!" Jackie asked getting in Rose's face. "It's just one lie after another!" Jackie stood back up and huffed. Rose knew Jackie was angry but Rose was getting angry at Jackie. But Rose couldn't yell at Jackie without it turning into one of their fights. And they always ended with Rose telling Jackie that she is not even Rose's real mother. Rose hadn't told the Doctor that she was adopted yet and she didn't want him finding out that way.

"I meant to phone. I really did. I just I forgot." Rose said trying her best not to sound angry, but after the words left her lips they sounded whinier than she had intended.

"What, for a year?!" Jackie asked. "You forgot for a year?!" She dragged out the last year, trying to illustrate how ridiculous that sounded. "And I am left sitting here. I just don't believe you! Why won't you tell me where you've been?"

"Actually, it's my fault," the Doctor finally spoke up. "I sort of er, employed Rose as my companion."

"When you say companion, is this a sexual relationship?" the cop asked. Part of Rose wanted to laugh, while the other part of her wanted to scream at the cop for assuming that she was 'easy'.

"No," the Doctor and Rose answered. Rose sounding offended, and the Doctor simply answering.

"Then what is it?" Jackie asked sounding angry. "Because you, you waltz in here all charm and smiles, and the next thing I know, she vanishes off the face of the Earth! How old are you then? Forty? Forty five? What, did you find her on the Internet? Did you go online and pretend you're a doctor?" She stepped closer to him as she spoke.

"I am a Doctor," he said with a large charming smile.

"Prove it," she said firmly as she got really close to him. "Stitch this, mate!" She slapped him so hard the force of it made him lean down. She left and went to the kitchen, Rose decided to follow her.

"Did you think about me at all?" Jackie asked.

"I did," Rose said. "All the time, but-" She stopped as tears flowed freely from Jackie's eyes.

"One phone call," she said. "Just to know that you were alive."

"I'm sorry," Rose said honestly. "I really am."

"Do you know, what terrifies me is that you still can't say," Jackie said as she started to fully cry. "What happened to you, Rose? What can be so bad that you can't tell me, sweetheart? Where were you?" Rose pulled Jackie into a hug.

"Ma'am," the cop said as he entered the kitchen. "I need your formal statement." Rose let Jackie go and so Jackie could follow him back into the living room. Rose slipped out of the apartment, and up to the roof. She sat on the top of the structure housing the air conditioner. She sat there thinking about her dreams. They were getting more frequent, and that worried her. What could they mean? She sighed as the Doctor walked up to her. He stood by her, but didn't say anything.

"I can't tell her," she said. "I can't even begin. She's never going to forgive me. And I missed a year. Was it good?"

"Middling," he said.

"You're so useless," she laughed.

"Well, if it's this much trouble, are you going to stay here now?" he asked with a slightly worried tone.

"No, but I can't do that to her again," she said.

"Well, she's not coming with us," he said firmly.

"No chance," she said.

"I don't do families," he said firmly.

"She slapped you!" she exclaimed with a laugh.

"Nine hundred years of time and space, and I've never been slapped by someone's mother," he said as she laughed.

"Your face," she said as she laughed.

"It hurt!" he exclaimed.

"You're so gay," she laughed. Then she stopped laughing abruptly. "She's not my real mum."

"What?" he asked as he turned to look at her.

"I was adopted," she said. Silence fell between them. "When you say nine hundred years?"

"That's my age," he said simply.

"You're nine hundred years old?" she asked.

"Yeah," he said.

"Mum was right," she said. "That is one hell of an age gap." She got up, walked to the edge of the apartment building. "Every conversation with you just goes mental." She turned around and looked at him again. "There's no one else I can talk to. I've seen all that stuff up there, the size of it, and I can't say a word. Aliens and spaceships and things, and I'm the only person on planet Earth who knows they exist." A large spaceship flew overhead with smoke bellowing out the back of it, flew over their head. It crashed into Big Ben and then finally crashed into the Themes. "Oh, that's just not fair." She looked back at him and he grinned. He grabbed her hand and they ran down the stairs, and down the street until they came to a road block. A soldier stopped them from processing.

"Get back," he said as he motioned for them to move. "Get back."

"It's blocked off," the Doctor said as he tried to get a look from where they were.

"We're miles from the center," she said. "The city must be grid locked. The whole of London must be closing down."

"I know," he said sounding excitedly. "I can't believe, I'm here to see this. This is fantastic!" He was beaming like a child, that just got everything they asked for on their birthday or Christmas.

"Did you know this was going to happen?" she asked.

"Nope!" he said happily.

"Do you recognize the ship?" she asked.

"Nope!" he said happily.

"Do you know why it crashed?" she asked.

"Nope!" he said happily.

"Oh, I'm so glad I've got you," she said sarcastically.

"I bet you are," he said with a big grin and she gave him a dirty look. "This is what I travel for, Rose. To see history happening right in front of us."

"Well, let's go and see it," she said. "Never mind the traffic, we've got the TARDIS."

"Hmm, better not," he said. "They've already got one spaceship in the middle of London. I don't want to shove another one on top."

"Yeah, but yours looks like a big blue box," she said. "No one's going to notice."

"You'd be surprised," he said. "Emergency like this, there'll be all kinds of people watching. Trust me. The TARDIS stays where it is."

"So history's happening and we're stuck here," she said a bit put out.

"Yes, we are," he said as he tried to get a good look again but failed.

"We could always do what everybody else does," she said with a shrug. He looked at her confused. "We could watch it on the TV." They walked back to Jackie's apartment, where he turned on the TV and Rose sat on the sofa on the other side of the room. Rose wasn't paying any attention to the TV. She was listening to Jackie and Rue, talking about the Doctor and Rose's dissapearance.

"You've broken your mother's heart," Rue scolded Rose as Jackie brought in three cups of tea. She gave one to Rue, then one to Rose, and kept the last one for herself.

"I'm not going to make him welcome," Jackie said bitterly. Rose rolled her eyes.

"I cradled her like a child!" Rue exclaimed still trying to berate Rose for not calling. Rose felt that she didn't need this from Rue, who was only Jackie's best friend.

"Oi, I'm trying to listen!" he said harshly as if the girls were being rude. They sat there a little longer, the Doctor watching the TV, Rue and Jackie talking about top up cards and the different men that they had been with of late, and Rose just sat there deep in thought. She wanted to tell Jackie about the dreams but at the same time Rose knew that Jackie would most likely react the same way she had when Rose was little. She sighed. She had to try.

"Come out with me, Mum," she said.

"I'm not going anywhere and neither are you!" Jackie exclaimed.

"Please, Mum," Rose stressed the urgency of her need to talk to her mother. Jackie nodded and the two woman walked up to the roof where the Doctor and Rose had talked before.

"Well, out with it!" Jackie exclaimed. Rose sighed again.

"Mum, I never stopped having the dreams," she started and watched as Jackie's eyes widened. "But, I can remember them now." She just let Rose continue. "The Doctor has been helping me with the dreams."

"How is it that he can help you but no other doctor could?!" Jackie nearly yelled the question.

"Because he doesn't try to blame it on the fact I was adopted!" Rose shouted back, it was a lie but she couldn't even begin to tell her the truth. "He just listens to me!"

"I listened to you," Jackie said calmly.

"No," Rose said sounding slightly angry. "You heard what I was saying but you never really listened."

"Well what was I to do?!" Jackie asked loudly.

"Be there for me!" Rose shouted as she started to cry. "You were never there when I had these dreams!"

"You told me you were dreaming about war," Jackie said. "You were only four when you started to have the dreams." She sighed. "A four year old shouldn't even know what war is."

"You could have just held me," Rose said. "Told me it would be OK. But instead what did you do?" She paused waiting for Jackie to answer, but she didn't. "You shipped me off to doctors one after the other! They tried to tell me to block it out. They told me that I was sick!"

"Oh, Rose," Jackie said. "I didn't, I didn't know."

"I think that's why I couldn't remember them," Rose said as the tears flowed like twin rivers down her face. "They blamed you, they blamed dad. I just wanted the dreams to go away." Jackie was crying now too. "But now I want to understand them. I think they are a link to my birth parents."

"If you want to know your birth parents then here," Jackie said as she took a locket out of her pocket and handed it to Rose. "This was found on you when they found you at the orphanage."

"My birth parents left me this?" Rose asked. "It's beautiful." It was a simple gold locket, with strange symbols on the cover. She stared at the locket. Jackie noticed that it was almost like Rose couldn't really see the locket.

As she looked at it she heard in her mind, _Don't open this locket. _It repeated over and over.

"Rose?" Jackie said snapping Rose out of the daze.

"What?" she said.

"You looked like you were in a daze," Jackie said worriedly.

"I'm fine," Rose said as she put the necklace on and tucked it under her shirt. "Let's go back in I think the kids were giving the Doctor a rough time of it." They walked down the stairs and back to the apartment. Jackie walked in first and before Rose got back in the Doctor came out. "And where do you think you're going?" She gave him a knowing smile as he passed her.

"Nowhere," he said. "It's just a bit human in there for me. History just happened and they're talking about where you can buy dodgy top-up cards for half price. I'm off on a wander, that's all."

"Right," she said. "There's a spaceship on the Thames and you're just wandering."

"Nothing to do with me," he said. "It's not an invasion. That was a genuine crash landing. Angle of descent, color of smoke, everything. It's perfect."

"So?" she asked.

"So maybe this is it," he said with a large goofy grin. "First contact. The day mankind officially comes into contact with an alien race. I'm not interfering because you've got to handle this on your own." She gives him a look that says she don't really believe him. "That's when the human race finally grows up. Just this morning you were all tiny and small and made of clay." He waved his hands about and they laughed. "Now you can expand. You don't need me. Go and celebrate history. Spend some time with your mum."

"Promise you won't disappear?" she asked.

"Jesuecka," he said. She smiled at him for using the language she taught him. "Tell you what. TARDIS key. It's about time you had one. See you later."

"See you, Hecua," she said and he smiled at her then walked away and she walked back inside.

"Here's to the Martians!" Jackie shouted as Rose got inside.

"The Martians!" everyone shouted except Rose.

"Crisis, with no head of state," the new reports as Mickey walked in. "Since the Royal Family have been evacuated-" Rose spotted Mickey.

"I was going to come and see you," she said.

"Someone owes Mickey an apology," Rue said.

"I'm sorry," Rose said sheepishly.

"Not you," Rue said as she looked from Rose to Jackie.

"Well, it's not my fault," Jackie said and Rue gave her the 'really?' look. "Be fair. What was I supposed to think?" Jackie walked back into the kitchen. He and Rose followed Jackie into the kitchens.

"You disappear, who do they turn to?" he scolded. "Your best friend. Five times I was taken in for questioning. Five times." He paced the kitchen throwing his hands about. "No evidence. Course, there couldn't be, could there? And then I get her, your mother, whispering around the estate, pointing the finger. Stuff through my letterbox, and all 'cos of you."

"I didn't think I'd be gone so long," Rose said honestly.

"And I waited for you, Rose," he said. "Twelve months, waiting for you and the Doctor to come back."

"Hold on," Jackie said. "You knew about the Doctor? Why didn't you tell me?"

"Yeah, yeah," he said as he hurriedly shut the serving hatch and the kitchen door. "Why not, Rose? Huh? How could I tell her where you went?"

"Tell me now," Jackie demanded.

"I might as well, 'cos you're stuck here," he said. "The Doctor's gone. Just now. That box thing just faded away."

"What do you mean?" Rose asked worriedly.

"He's left you!" he exclaimed. "Some boyfriend he turned out to be." She ran out of the apartment and down to where the TARDIS used to be, with him trailing after.

"He wouldn't just go, he promised me," she said not realizing that she sounded a bit whiny.

"Oh, he's dumped you, Rose," he said slightly happier than he intended. "Sailed off into space. How does it feel, huh? Now you are left behind with the rest of us Earthlings. Get used to it."

"He would have said," she said.

"What're you two chimps going on about?" Jackie asked as she came out of the apartment building. "What's going on? What's this Doctor done now?"

"Ho, ho, ho. He's vamoosed," he laughed.

"He's not, because he gave me this," Rose said as she pulled out the TARDIS key the Doctor had given her. "He's not my boyfriend, Mickey. He's better than that. He's much more important than that." The key began to glow and grew warm to the touch. Suddenly the sound of the TARDIS landing rang out through the air. "I said so." She realized that Jackie was still standing there. "Mum! Mum, go inside." Rose waved her arm trying to shoo Jackie away. "Mum, don't stand there, just go inside." But she just stood there looking on in horror. "Just, Mum, go. Oh, blimey." The TARDIS rematerialized.

"Huh?" Mickey said.

"How'd you do that, then?" Jackie asked as Rose ran into the TARDIS with Mickey in tow.

"All right, so I lied," the Doctor said as she got to the console. "I went and had a look. But the whole crash landing's a fake. I thought so. Just too perfect. I mean, hitting Big Ben. Come on, so I thought let's go and have a look."

"My mum's here," she said as Jackie walked in.

"Oh, that's just what I need," he said as he turned around and saw her. He turned back around and looked at the screen. "Don't you dare make this place domestic."

"You ruined my life, Doctor," Mickey said pointedly. "They thought she was dead. I was a murder suspect because of you."

"You see what I mean?" the Doctor asked. "Domestic."

"I bet you don't even remember my name," Mickey said.

"Ricky," the Doctor said.

"It's Mickey," Mickey said.

"No, it's Ricky," the Doctor said.

"I think I know my own name," Mickey said gruffly.

"You think you know your own name?" the Doctor said looking a Mickey with discuss. "How stupid are you?"

"Mum, don't!" Rose shouted as Jackie ran out of the TARDIS. "Don't go anywhere. Don't start a fight!" Rose ran after Jackie. "Mum, it's not like that. He's not. I'll be up in a minute. Hold on!" Rose ran back into the TARDIS. "That was a real spaceship." She walked back to the console.

"Yep," the Doctor said quickly.

"So it's all a pack of lies?" she asked. "What is it, then? Are they invading?"

"Funny way to invade, putting the world on red alert," Mickey said.

"Good point!" the Doctor exclaimed. "So, what're they up to?" He got under the grating and started to work on the TARDIS. Mickey walked over and bent down to get a good look at what the Doctor was doing.

"So, what're you doing down there?" Mickey asked.

"Ricky," the Doctor said with his Sonic still in his mouth.

"Mickey," Mickey corrected.

"Ricky," the Doctor said after he took the Sonic out of his mouth. "If I was to tell you what I was doing to the controls of my frankly magnificent time ship, would you even begin to understand?" Rose giggled a bit.

"I suppose not," Mickey said.

"Well, shut it, then," the Doctor said as he put the Sonic back in his mouth then continued to work. Mickey walked back to Rose.

"Some friend you've got," he said.

"He's winding you up," she said dismissively. Then her expression turned serious. "I am sorry."

"Okay," he said sadly

"I am, though," she said.

"Every day, I looked," he said sadly. "On every street corner, wherever I went, looking for a blue box for a whole year."

"It's only been a few days for me," she said. "I don't know. It's, it's hard to tell inside this thing but I swear it's just a few days since I left you."

"Not enough time to miss me, then?" he asked.

"I did miss you," she said. She grabbed his hand and offered him a comforting smile. "I'll always miss my best friend."

"I missed you," he said honestly.

"So got a girlfriend yet?" she teased.

"No," he said sadly

"Sorry," she said, she felt bad for teasing him.

"Mainly because everyone thinks I murdered you," he said. "People intend to stay away from murderers."

"Right," she said. "Sorry."

"So, now that you've come back, are you going to stay?" he asked.

"I can remember some of my dreams," she whispered. "Being here helps, I think." Mickey opened his mouth to say something but was cut off by the Doctor.

"Got it!" he exclaimed happily as he jumped out and over to the console again. "Ha, ha! Patched in the radar, looped it back twelve hours so we can follow the flight of that spaceship. Here we go. Hold on. Come on." He looked at the monitor. "That's the spaceship on its way to Earth, see? Except. Hold on. See? The spaceship did a sling shot round the Earth before it landed."

"What does that mean?" she asked.

"It means it came from Earth in the first place," he said. "It went up and came back down. Whoever those aliens are, they haven't just arrived, they've been here for a while. The question is, what have they been doing?" They turn the channel on the monitor.

"How many channels do you get?" Mickey asked.

"All the basic packages," the Doctor said.

"You get sports channels?" Mickey asked hopefully.

"Yes, I get the football," the Doctor said as he looked from Mickey back to the monitor. "Hold on, I know that lot." The Doctor turned up the volume on the monitor.

"It is looking likely that the Government's bringing in alien specialists - those people who have devoted their lives to studying outer space," the reporter said.

"UNIT," he said. "United Nations Intelligence Task-force. Good people."

"How do you know them?" she asked.

"'Cos he's worked for them," Mickey said before the Doctor could answer her. "Oh yeah, don't think I sat on my backside for twelve months, Doctor. I read up on you. You look deep enough on the Internet or in the history books, and there's his name, followed by a list of the dead.

"That's nice," the Doctor said with a fake smile. "Good boy, Ricky."

"If you know them, why don't you go and help?" she asked.

"They wouldn't recognize me," he said. "I've changed a lot since the old days. Besides, the world's on a knife-edge. There's aliens out there and fake aliens. We want to keep this alien out of the mix. I'm going undercover. And er, I'd better keep the TARDIS out of sight. Ricky, you've got a car. You can do some driving." He moved to the door.

"Where to?" Mickey asked.

"The roads are clearing," the Doctor said. "Let's go and have a look at that spaceship." They all walked out and suddenly there were all manner of law enforcement officers surrounding them. They shouted at the three of them. Rose raised her hands, so did the Doctor but Mickey ran away. "Take me to your leader." The Doctor chuckled at his own joke, while Rose rolled her eyes. The two of them were escorted to a limo, then pushed in.

"This is a bit posh," she said as she looked over the limo. "If I knew it was going to be like this, being arrested, I would have done it years ago."

"We're not being arrested, we're being escorted," he said with a smile.

"Where to?" she asked.

"Where'd you think?" he said but she kept giving him the confused look. "Downing Street."

"You're kidding," she said sounding surprised.

"I'm not," he said with a grin.

"10 Downing Street?" she asked.

"That's the one," he said.

"Oh, my God," she squealed excitedly, but something inside her tried to warn her of danger, but of course she dismissed it. "I'm going to 10 Downing Street? How come?"

"I hate to say it, but Mickey was right," he said. "Over the years I've visited this planet a lot of times, and I've been, er, noticed."

"Now they need you?" she asked, as the feeling grew stronger.

"Like it said on the news," he said. "They're gathering experts in alien knowledge. And who's the biggest expert of the lot?"

"Patrick Moore?" she asked with a teasing smile. But the feeling grew so strong, she started to shake with a mixture of fear and anticipation.

"Apart from him," he said. She was happy that he didn't look over at her because the shaking had become noticeable.

"Oh, don't you just love it," she said teasingly.

"I'm telling you," he said. "Lloyd George, he used to drink me under the table. Who's the Prime Minister now?" He finally looked at her.

"How should I know?" she asked. "I missed a year."

"You're shaking," he said with great concern. "Are you cold?"

"Just excited," she said, which wasn't a lie but not the full truth either. They got out of the limo, and the reporters started to take dozens of pictures. She had to shield her eyes from the flashes. As the flashes flashed glimpses of the dreams flashed through her mind. The Doctor seemed to notice this and grabbed her hand and pulled her inside of 10 Downing Street's building.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

"I'm fine," she said and he gave her a look that said he didn't believe her. "I'm fine, the flashing was just a bit much." He nodded and she let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. He took her hand and walked with her to where everyone else was.

"Ladies and gentlemen, can we convene?" a man said as they walked into the area. "Quick as we can, please. It's this way on the right, and can I remind you ID cards are to be worn at all times." He handed the Doctor an ID badge. "Here's your ID card. I'm sorry, your companion doesn't have clearance."

"I don't go anywhere without her," he protested.

"You're the code nine, not her," the man said. "I'm sorry, Doctor. It is the Doctor, isn't it? She'll have to stay outside."

"She's staying with me," the Doctor said firmly, sounding threatening.

"Look, even I don't have clearance to go in there," the man said. "I can't let her in and that's a fact."

"It's all right," she said with a soft smile. "You go."

"Excuse me," an older woman said as she came up to the Doctor. "Are you the Doctor?"

"Sure," he said to the woman.

"Not now," the man said. "We're busy. Can't you go home?"

"I just need a word in private," she said.

"I suppose so," the Doctor said to Rose. "Don't get in any trouble." He pointed his finger at her and she gave him a grin as he left.

"You haven't got clearance," the man said to the woman. "Now leave it." He turned to Rose. "I'm going to have to leave you with security."

"It's all right," the woman said. "I'll look after her. Let me be of some use." She put her arms around Rose and guided her away from the man. "Walk with me. Just keep walking."

"That's right," the woman said. "Don't look round. Harriet Jones, MP Flydale North." She flashed her badge to Rose. "This friend of yours, he's an expert, is that right? He knows about aliens?"

"Why do you want to know?" she asked. Suddenly the shock and trama of what Harriet had seen became too much for her, she burst into tears. Rose did her best to comfort Harriet, when she finally stopped crying they made their way to the cabinet room.

"They turned the body into a suit," she said. "A disguise for the thing inside!"

"It's all right," Rose said. "I believe you. It's, it's alien. They must have some serious technology behind this. If we could find it, we could use it." They searched the room, she opened the wardrobe and found a body inside. "Oh, my God! Is that the-" She didn't get to finish her question when the man for earlier burst in.

"Harriet, for God's sake," he said. "This has gone beyond a joke. You cannot just wander." That is when he saw the body on the floor. "Oh, my God. That's the Prime Minister!"

"Oh!" came a female voice. "Has someone been naughty?" They all turned to see a large woman in the doorway. Rose knew her but she couldn't put her finger on who she was.

"That's impossible," he said as the woman moved in closer to them. "He left this afternoon. The Prime Minister left Downing Street. He was driven away!"

"And who told you that, hmm?" she said. "Me." Finally it came to Rose the woman was the transportation security advisor or something like that, but her name was Margaret. She reached up to her hairline and unzipped revealing the alien underneath. She grabbed the man and held him up choking him. Something in Rose snapped and suddenly she ran up to the alien and used it massive belly for leverage in order to kick the alien in the face. The kick rendered the alien unconscious, saving the man.

"How'd you do that?" he asked.

"I don't know," she said. "But I hope I can do it again."

"So do I," Harriet said.

"Come on," Rose said as she pulled the two along with her. The man let go of Rose when the Margaret came after them again. Rose rolled her eyes as the man's cowardice. Then a thought came that wasn't her thought. _Well, he's only human._ She was a bit weirded out by that but she didn't let it show. She had gotten quite good at hiding. The two women came to a door that was jammed. Margaret cornnered them, but luckily for Rose and Harriet the elevator opened to reveal the Doctor.

"Hello!" he exclaimed cheerfully. Which destracted Margaret long enough for them to find a different door. They entered a room with no way out and Margaret was closing in.

"Hide!" Rose quietly exclaimed. Rose hided behind the cabinet, Harriet behind the screen. Margaret enters and sniffs around. Then two more enter the room.

"My brothers," Margaret said.

"Happy hunting?" a male asked.

"It's wonderful," she squealed. "The more you prolong it, the more they stink."

"Sweat and fear," a different male said.

"I can smell an old girl," the first male said. "Stale bird and brittle bones."

"And a ripe youngster, all hormones and adrenalin," she said. "Fresh enough to bend before she snaps. But brothers something smells off about the youngster." Rose could hear them sniffing.

"I agree sister," the second male said.

"Smells like a Kiwaka," the first male said. "But mixed with human."

"Well a hunt is a hunt," Margaret said as she pulled back the curtain. Rose growled low at the aliens. All her fear left her body. "That look. She is a Kiwaka. How delightful." Just as Margaret was about to kill Rose, the Doctor burst in with a fire extinguisher. He sprayed the aliens with it.

"Out, with me!" he commanded. She pulled the curtain down on Margaret, then ran out. A short time later the Doctor came out with Harriet. "We need to head to the Cabinet Room."

"The Emergency Protocols are in there," she said. "They give instructions for aliens."

"Harriet Jones, I like you," he said as they ran.

"And I like you too," she said. They got to the cabinet room with the aliens in tow. He grabbed the decanter and pointed the Sonic at it.

"One more move and my sonic device will triplicate the flammability of this alcohol," he said. "Whoof, we all go up. So back off!" They stepped back. "Right then. Question time. Who exactly are the Slitheen?"

"They're aliens," Harriet said.

"Yes," he said. "I got that, thanks."

"Who are you, if not human?" the first male asked.

"Who's not human?" she asked.

"He's not human," Rose said.

"He's not human?" Harriet asked as she pointed at the Doctor.

"Can I have a bit of hush?" he asked.

"Sorry," she said. Suddenly a rage boiled up in Rose so strong she had the desire to hit something or hurt someone. That was new.

"So, what's the plan?" he asked.

"But he's got a Northern accent," Harriet said.

"Lots of planets have a north," Rose said as the rage was almost uncontrollable.

"I said hush," he said. "Come on. You've got a spaceship hidden in the North Sea. It's transmitting a signal. You've murdered your way to the top of government. What for, invasion?"

"Why would we invade this God-forsaken rock?" the first male asked.

"Then something's brought the Slitheen race here. What is it?" the Doctor asked.

"The Slitheen race?" the second male asked with a small chuckle form the aliens.

"Slitheen is not their species," Rose said with the rage thick in her voice. "Slitheen is their surname." The Doctor gave her a confused look.

"That's right, Kiwaka," the first male said. "Jocrassa Fel Fotch Pasameer-Day-Slitheen at your service."

"So, you're family," the Doctor said as he looked back to Jocrassa.

"A family business," he said.

"Then you're out to make a profit," the Doctor said. "How can you do that on a God-forsaken rock?"

"Ah, excuse me?" the second male asked. "Your device will do what? Triplicate the flammability?"

"Is that what I said?" the Doctor asked.

"You're making it up," the second male said.

"Ah, well!" the Doctor exclaimed he passed the decanter to Harriet. "Nice try. Harriet, have a drink. I think you're gonna need it." She was holding the red case that had the emergency protocols in it.

"You pass it to the left first," she said.

"Sorry," he said as he passed it to Rose instead.

"Thanks," she said as she took the decanter.

"Now we can end this hunt with a slaughter," the second male said.

"Fascinating history, Downing Street," the Doctor said. "Two thousand years ago, this was marsh land. 1730, it was occupied by a Mister Chicken. He was a nice man. 1796, this was the Cabinet Room. If the Cabinet's in session and in danger, these are about the four most safest walls in the whole of Great Britain. End of lesson." He lifted a small panel that revealed a button, he pushed it and steel reinforced the room. "Installed in 1991. Three inches of steel lining every single wall. They'll never get in."

"And how do we get out?" she asked. The rage had died down.

"Ah," he said as if he hadn't thought of that. Harriet sat down in a chair and got comfortable. "How'd you know the Slitheen was a surname?"

"I don't know," she said honestly. She got closer to him so she could whisper. "Sometimes it's like someone else's thoughts are in my head. Thoughts and emotions."

"When we get back to the TARDIS we'll take a look," he said with a soft smile. "Sorry. Right, what have we got? Any terminals, anything?" He clapped his hands as he looked around.

"No," she said. "This place is antique."

"What I don't get is, when they killed the Prime Minister, why didn't they use him as a disguise?" Harriet asked.

"He's too slim," he said. "They're big old beasts. They need to fit inside big humans."

"But the Slitheen are about eight feet," she said. "How do they fit inside?"

"That's the device around their necks," he said. "Compression field. Literally shrinks them down a bit. That's why there's all that gas. It's a big exchange."

"Wish I had a compression field," Rose said jokingly. "I could fit a size smaller."

"Excuse me, people are dead!" Harriet exclaimed. "This is not the time for making jokes."

"Sorry," Rose said. "You get used to this stuff when you're friends with him."

"Well, that's a strange friendship," Harriet said.

"Harriet Jones," he said. "I've heard that name before. Harriet Jones. You're not famous for anything, are you?"

"Oh, hardly," Harriet said.

"Rings a bell," he said. "Harriet Jones?"

"Lifelong backbencher I'm afraid, and a fat lot of use I'm being now," she said. "The Protocols are redundant. They list the people who could help and they're all dead downstairs."

"Hasn't it got, like, defense codes and things?" Rose asked. "Couldn't we just launch a nuclear bomb at them?"

"You're a very violent young woman," Harriet said.

"I'm serious," Rose said. "We could."

"Well, there's nothing like that in here," Harriet said. "Nuclear strikes do need a release code, yes, but it's kept secret by the United Nations."

"Say that again," he said.

"What, about the codes?" she asked.

"Anything," he said. "All of it."

"Well, the British Isles can't gain access to atomic weapons without a Special Resolution from the UN," she explained.

"Like that's ever stopped them," Rose retorted.

"Exactly, given our past record," Harriet explained. "And I voted against that, thank you very much. The codes have been taken out of the government's hands and given to the UN. Is it important?"

"Everything's important," he said.

"If we only knew what the Slitheen wanted," she said. "Listen to me. I'm saying Slitheen as if it's normal." He walked up to Rose.

"Anything you know that could help us?" he whispered. She took a deep breath and looked deep, and sadly she could feel the presence of the rage she felt earlier but it felt like it was hiding. Hiding from her. She opened her eyes.

"Sorry," she whispered. "It's like it's hiding." He nodded and walked away from her.

"Well, they're just one family, so it's not an invasion," he said as he paced. "They don't want Slitheen World They're out to make money. That means they want to use something. Something here on Earth. Some kind of asset."

"Like what, gold?" Harriet said. "Oil? Water?"

"You're very good at this," he said with a proud smile.

"Thank you," she said.

"Harriet Jones," he said. "Why do I know that name?" Suddenly a phone made a beep noise.

"Oh, that's me," Rose said.

"But we're sealed off," Harriet said. "How did you get a signal?"

"He zapped it," Rose said as she raised the phone for Harriet to see. "Super phone." She lowered the phone and checked the message.

"Then we can phone for help," Harriet said. "You must have contacts."

"Dead downstairs, yeah," he said.

"It's Mickey," Rose said.

"Oh, tell your stupid boyfriend we're busy," he said bitterly.

"He's not my boyfriend, and not so stupid after all," she said as she showed him the picture that Mickey had sent of a Slitheen. She called him.

"No, no, no, no, no," he said as he answered the phone. "Not just alien, but like, proper alien. All stinking, and wet, and disgusting. And more to the point, it wanted to kill us!"

"I could've died!" she could hear Jackie shouting.

"Is she all right, though?" Rose said. "Don't put her on, just tell me."

"Is that Ricky?" the Doctor said, as he took the phone from Rose. "Don't talk, just shut up and go to your computer." Evidently Mickey said something because the Doctor spoke louder. "Mickey the Idiot, I might just choke before I finish this sentence, but, er, I need you." He plugged in the phone to a conference speaker. "Say again."

"It's asking for the password," Mickey said.

"Buffalo," the Doctor said. "Two Fs, one L."

"All the secret information known to mankind," Mickey said. Rose assumed he was talking to Jackie. "See, they've known about aliens for years. They just kept us in the dark."

"Mickey, you were born in the dark," the Doctor said.

"All humans were," Rose said then covered her mouth, as both he and Harriet gave her a strange look.

"Oi!" Mickey said. "Password again."

"Just repeat it every time," the Doctor said as he walked over to Rose again. "I thought you said it was hiding." He whispered the last bit.

"It was," she said. "I can't control it." She sighed. "We'll focus on me later, for now we need to stop the Slitheen." He nodded and turned back to the table.

"Big Ben - why did the Slitheen go and hit Big Ben?" he said.

"You said to gather the experts, to kill them," Harriet said.

"That lot would've gathered for a weather balloon," he said. "You don't need to crash land in the middle of London."

"The Slitheen are hiding, but then they put the entire planet on Red alert," Rose said. "What would they do that for?"

"Oh, listen to her," Jackie said over the phone.

"At least I'm trying," Rose said.

"Well, I've got a question, if you don't mind," Jackie said. "Since that man walked into our lives, I have been attacked in the streets. I have had creatures from the pits of hell in my own living room, and my daughter disappear off the face of the Earth."

"I told you what happened," Rose said.

"I'm talking to him," Jackie said. "'Cos I've seen this life of yours, Doctor. And maybe you get off on it, and maybe you think it's all clever and smart, but you tell me. Just answer me this. Is my daughter safe?"

"I'm fine," Rose said.

"Is she safe?" Jackie asked. "Will she always be safe? Can you promise me that? Well, what's the answer?" He looked at Rose with a sad look in his eyes. Rose was just about to say something when Mickey took the phone back.

"We're in," Mickey said.

"Now then, on the left at the top, there's a tab, an icon," the Doctor said. "Little concentric circles. Click on that." There was a strange sound was heard over the phone.

"What is it?" Mickey asked.

"The Slitheen have got a spaceship in the North Sea and it's transmitting that signal," the Doctor said. "Now hush, let me work out what it's saying."

"Hush!" Mickey said to Jackie.

"It's some sort of message," the Doctor said.

"What's it say?" Rose asked.

"Don't know," he replied. "It's on a loop, keeps repeating," Suddenly Mickey's door bell rang. "Hush!"

"That's not me," Mickey said then said something to Jackie that no one could hear.

"It's beaming out into space, who's it for?" the Doctor said.

"They've found us," Mickey said sounding fearful.

"Mickey, I need that signal," the Doctor commanded.

"Never mind the signal, get out!" Rose yelled. "Mum, just get out! Get out!"

"We can't," Mickey said. "It's by the front door. Oh, my God, it's unmasking. It's going to kill us."

"There's got to be some way of stopping them!" Harriet exclaimed. "You're supposed to be the expert, think of something!"

"I'm trying!" the Doctor shouted.

"I'll take it on, Jackie," Mickey said. "You just run. Don't look back. Just run."

"That's my mother," Rose said more to herself then to the Doctor. She searched inside for the voice.

"Right, If we're going to find their weakness, we need to find out where they're from," the Doctor said. "Which planet. So, judging by their basic shape, that narrows it down to five thousand planets within traveling distance. What else do we know about them? Information!"

"Raxacoricofallapatorius!" she shouted. The Doctor and Harriet gave her a strange look.

"Oh, yeah, great," Mickey retorted. "We could write 'em a letter."

"Get into the kitchen!" the Doctor exclaimed. "Calcium, weakened by the compression field. Acetic acid. Vinegar!"

"Just like Hannibal!" Harriet exclaimed.

"Just like Hannibal," the Doctor agreed. "Mickey, have you got any vinegar?"

"How should I know?" Mickey said.

"It's your kitchen," the Doctor said.

"I think it's in the cupboard by the sink, middle shelf," Rose said unsure of herself.

"What do you need?" Jackie asked.

"Anything with vinegar!" he exclaimed.

"Gherkins," she said. "Yeah, pickled onions. Pickled eggs."

"And you kiss this man?" the Doctor asked with a small look of disgust on his face.

"Used to," Rose laughed, as they hear a small explosion. "Hannibal?"

"Hannibal crossed the Alps by dissolving boulders with vinegar," Harriet explained.

"Oh. Well, there you go then," Rose said. They all toast to the survival of Mickey and Jackie.

"How'd you know what planet?" Harriet asked Rose.

"I'm not sure," she said honestly. She walked away from both Harriet and the Doctor, where she looked down at her hands in confusion. She felt a mix of emotions, the rage from earlier came back, a hint of sadness, and pain. Not physical pain, but her heart ached like she was missing something.

"Are you alright?" the Doctor asked as she came up behind her.

"I don't know," she said with a broken voice. "I-"

"The voice?" he asked. She nodded

"Listen to this," Mickey said.

"I'll explain later," she said. The Doctor nodded and walked back over to the table, where Harriet sat.

"Our inspectors have searched the sky above our heads," the Siltheen from earlier said. The screen said his name was Green. "And they have found massive weapons of destruction Capable of being deployed within forty five seconds."

"What?" the Doctor asked as he listened. Rose stopped listening, she couldn't listen without the rage growing. She heard enough to get the jest of the speech. The voice in her head was anxious and didn't want her to tell the Doctor, but she was firm on her decision to tell him. The Doctor's voice broke her out of her argument with the voice.

"He's making it up," he said. "There's no weapons up there, there's no threat. He just invented it."

"Do you think they'll believe him?" Harriet asked.

"They did last time," Rose said.

"That's why the Slitheen went for spectacle," he said. "They want the whole world panicking, because you lot, you get scared, you lash out."

"They release the defense code," she started.

"And the Slitheen go nuclear," he finished her statement.

"But why?" Harriet asked. He walked over to the steel shutter where the door once was and pushed the button to open the steel shutters.

"You get the codes, release the missiles, but not into space because there's nothing there," he said. "You attack every other country on Earth. They retaliate, fight back. World War Three. Whole planet gets nuked." His voice got grimmer as he spoke.

"And we can sit through it safe in our spaceship waiting in the Thames," Margaret said. "Not crashed, just parked. Only two minutes away."

"But you'll destroy the planet, this beautiful place," Harriet said. "What for?"

"Profit," he said bitterly. "That's what the signal is beaming into space. An advert."

"The sale of the century," Margaret said. "We reduce the Earth to molten slag, then sell it piece by piece. Radioactive chucks, capable of powering every cut-price star liner and budget cargo ship. There's a recession out there, Doctor. People are buying cheap. This rock becomes raw fuel."

"At the cost of five billion lives," he said bitterly.

"Bargain," Margaret said and the rage in Rose reached it boiling point.

"I give you a choice," he said. "Leave this planet or I'll stop you."

"What, you?" she asked smugly. "Trapped in your box?"

"Yes," he said firmly. "Me." The Doctor closed the shutters on Margaret's laughing face. Rose needed to calm down so, she sat down in a chair and her legs in another. She fell to sleep fairly quickly.

* * *

Crimson was much older, so old she lost track of how old she truly was. Though she hadn't physically aged. She was still Princess, scientist, and Warrior. But she had started her search for her imprint, she looked on all surrounding planets even Gallifrey which was no where near Domus. Finally she ended up on Shadouhōmu home of the Shadō shurui, her uncle's people and another race that looked like Demi-humans. Most were humanoid animals, but other were talking animals. They called themselves, Pīpuru. Which was Japanese for 'the people,' they spoke Japanese mostly but some knew English. Crimson found it inspiring that they didn't think themselves any different then anyone else. She was welcome with open arms.

That is were she met her best friend in the whole universe, Fenrir. He was the son of the chief of the tribe. She was exploring the surrounding area, when they literally bumped into each other. He was a tall lean man, with silver eyes, wild raven black hair, and two fuzzy wolf ears that sat atop his head. He wore a black duster made of leather that he left open with a pair of black trousers but no shoes. She could see his tail poking out from under his duster. "Forgive me," he said in English, she was shocked that his accent was like her fathers. He helped her to her feet.

"No, i-it was my fault," she stammered.

"I'm Fenrir," he said as extended his hand for her to shake it.

"Oh, forgive my manners," she said as she took his hand and shook it. "My name is Crimson."

"Oh, you're the princess that my father said was visiting," he said. "What is a princess doing out here?"

"Well I'm a lot more than my title suggests," she said with a warm smile.

"Can I have my hand back?" he asked. She looked down to see that she still had hold of his hand.

"I'm so sorry," she said.

"It's fine," he said with a laugh. "I seem to have that effect on women."

"I didn't," she said. "I don't." She shifted nervously.

"You're fine," he said. "Come on let's go back to the village." She nodded and they walked back. They talked a lot after that meeting, she found out that while he had an effect on women he wasn't interested in women in the slightest. He preferred men, which made her feel like a fool for crushing on him for the first few weeks they knew each other. He also told her that his blood line could transform into the animal they were, which for him was a large wolf, so large she could have used him like a horse. Since he opened up to her, she opened up to him and told him everything about herself, within the years that followed they became as close as two people that weren't imprints or bonded could be.

She left Shadouhōmu and went back to Domus with no hope of ever finding her imprint. But Fenrir told her to never give up. They stayed in contact and visited each other often, so often that rumors ran wild about them. Most claimed that he was indeed her imprint, while others said they were lovers. She shook her head at the rumors, she didn't even work to change them because they didn't care.

Years past, like leaves on the wind until the day that Domus welcomed Fenrir as one of it's own. He was visiting her because she was stressing over a large ball that was to be thrown for her new baby cousins. She was instructed to plan it. She hated planning parties, now planning battles or drawing plans for a new invention she could do not a problem. But they were in her room he was sleeping at her feet in his wolf form, while she racked her brain for some plan for the party. Suddenly a guard burst into her room.

"Princess," he said as he bowed to her. He had said it so loudly that it woke Fenrir who rose and hit his head on the desk he was under. He yelped as his head hit. "Forgive me Lord Fenrir."

"It's fine," he said as he transformed back to his humanoid form. He rubbed his head.

"Is there a propose to this intrusion of my room and my privacy?" she asked.

"Yes, Princess," the guard said nervously.

"Out with it, Rusty," she said with a smile, letting him know it was OK.

"Um," he said. "There was an attack on Shadouhōmu."

"Is everyone alright?" she asked.

"My tribe?" Fenrir asked.

"I'm sorry my Lord," Rusty said sadly. "You're tribe was kill save for the ones that escaped to the city of the Shadō shurui."

"Damn!" Fenrir shouted.

"Relax, Fenrir," she said softly as she laid a hand on his shoulder. "My Uncle will protect them."

"Was my father among them?" he asked.

"I do not know," Rusty said sadly.

"Let's go," she said as she started to change out of her pajamas right in front of the men. Rusty grew bright red and turned his back and Fenrir did nothing. She changed into her battle attire. "I'm all set." They traveled to the city of the Shadō shurui, when the three of them got there, everything was in ruins. Most people were alive and there were dead machines every where. She knew these machine, they were Cybermen. That saddened her. Cyberman were a converting race, they converted everything human into them, and destroyed the rest.

"Crimson!" Shadow shouted as he ran up to them. "Fenrir, you don't need to be here."

"I have to see my father," Fenrir said. Shadow looked away from Fenrir. "He's not! Tell me he's not!"

"I'm sorry," Shadow said. "You are the only surviving member of your family." Fenrir ran out of the city, she followed him. They ran all the way to were his tribe was. He found his father's body and he cried over it. She felt for him because he had no parents now. She cried with him, and yelled at the Gods for letting this happen to her best friend.

* * *

"Rose!" the Doctor shouted with fear and concern in his eyes. "Rose!"

"What?" she asked.

"You were yelling and crying in your sleep," Harriet said with almost as much concern as the Doctor had.

"I was?" Rose asked. "I don't remember." But she did remember. Which reinforced her decision to tell him about the dreams, but not now. Now was a bad time. "Let's call them back." Changing the subject and grabbed the phone to call Jackie and Mickey back.

"About time," he said.

"Hello to you too," Rose said sarcastically.

"All right, Doctor," Jackie said. "I'm not saying I trust you, but there must be something you can do."

"If we could ferment the port, we could make acetic acid," Harriet suggested.

"Mickey, any luck?" Rose asked.

"There's loads of emergency numbers," he said. "They're all on voicemail."

"Voicemail dooms us all," Harriet said.

"If we could just get out of here," Rose said.

"There's a way out," the Doctor said.

"What?" Rose asked.

"There's always been a way out," he said.

"Then why don't we use it?" she asked.

"Because I can't guarantee your daughter will be safe," he said as he rushed over to the phone.

"Don't you dare," Jackie said. "Whatever it is, don't you dare!"

"That's the thing," he said. "If I don't dare, everyone dies."

"Do it," Rose said firmly.

"You don't even know what it is," he said looking at her with a mixture of sadness and joy. "You'd just let me?"

"Yeah," she said.

"Please, Doctor," Jackie said. "Please. She's my daughter. She's just a kid."

"Do you think I don't know that?" he asked loudly. "Because this is my life, Jackie. It's not fun, it's not smart, it's just standing up and making a decision because nobody else will."

"Then what're you waiting for?" Rose asked firmly.

"I could save the world but lose you," he said with a look on his face that was priceless. Love.

"Except it's not your decision, Doctor," Harriet said. "It's mine."

"And who the hell are you?" Jackie asked.

"Harriet Jones, MP for Flydale North," Harriet said. "The only elected representative in this room, chosen by the people for the people. And on behalf of the people, I command you. Do it." He smiled at her then looked back to Rose.

"How do we get out?" she asked.

"We don't," he said. "We stay here." He shuffled through the protocols. "Use the buffalo password. It overrides everything."

"Hacking into the Royal Navy," Mickey said, most likely answering a question posed to him by Jackie. "We're in. Here it is. HMS Taurean, Trafalgar Class submarine, ten miles off the coast of Plymouth."

"Right, we need to select a missile," the Doctor said.

"We can't go nuclear," Mickey said. "We don't have the defense codes."

"We don't need it," the Doctor said. "All we need's an ordinary missile. What's the first category?"

"Sub Harpoon, UGM-A4A," Mickey replied.

"That's the one," the Doctor said. "Select. You ready for this?"

"Yeah," Mickey said firmly.

"Mickey the idiot, the world is in your hands," the Doctor said. "Fire."

"How solid are these?" Harriet asked.

"Not solid enough," the Doctor said. "Built for short range attack, nothing this big."

"All right, now I'm making the decision," Rose announced. "I'm not going to die. We're going to ride this one out. It's like what they say about earthquakes. You can survive them by standing under a door frame. Now, this cupboard's small so it's strong. Come and help me. Come on." She motioned to Harriet, who does.

"It's on radar," Mickey said. "Counter defense five five six."

"Stop them intercepting it," the Doctor commanded.

"I'm doing it now," Mickey said.

"Good boy," the Doctor said.

"Five five six neutralized," Mickey informed. The Doctor unplugged the phone and joined the women in the closet.

"Here we go," Harriet said. "Nice knowing you both. Hannibal!" It hit they rolled and tumbled around in the closet. Some time later after the closet had stopped rolling about the Doctor kicked open the door. He helped Harriet out first. "Made in Britain." Then he helped Rose out.

"Oh, my God," a solider said as he came up to them. "Are you all right?"

"Harriet Jones," Harriet said as she raised her ID badge. "MP, Flydale North. I want you to contact UN immediately. Tell the ambassadors the crisis is over. They can step down. Go on, tell the news."

"Yes, ma'am," he said happily as he ran off to do as she asked.

"Someone's got a hell of a job sorting this lot out," she said to the Doctor and Rose. "Oh, Lord. We haven't even got a Prime Minister."

"Maybe you should have a go," he said.

"Me?" Harriet asked. "Huh. I'm only a back-bencher."

"I'd vote for you," Rose said with a smile.

"Now, don't be silly," Harriet said. "Look, I'd better go and see if I can help." She turned back and made her way down the rubble. "Hang on! We're safe! The Earth is safe! Sergeant!"

"I thought I knew the name," he said. "Harriet Jones, future Prime Minister. Elected for three successive terms. The architect of Britain's Golden Age."

"The crisis has passed!" Harriet exclaimed as Rose and the Doctor walked away. "Ladies and gentlemen, I have something to say to you all here today! Mankind stands tall, proud and undefeated. God bless the human race."

Just as Rose was about to walk into the TARDIS and tell the Doctor everything, Jackie ran out and hugged Rose. She fell bad for Jackie, so she went with Jackie into the apartment. Some time later they were watching the TV and relaxing. "Mankind stands tall, proud-" Harriet said on the TV.

"Harriet Jones," Jackie said in disgust. "Who does she think she is? Look at her, taking all the credit. Should be you on there. My daughter saved the world!"

"I think the Doctor helped a bit," Rose said.

"All right, then," Jackie said. "Him too. You should be given knighthoods."

"That's not the way he does things," Rose said. "No fuss. He just moves on. He's not that bad if you gave him a chance."

"He's good in a crisis, I'll give him that," Jackie said.

"Oh, now the world has changed," Rose said. "You're saying nice things about him."

"Well, I reckon I've got no choice," Jackie said. "There's no getting rid of him since you're infatuated."

"I'm not infatuated," Rose said. "I just really think he can help with my dreams."

"What does he eat?" Jackie asked.

"How do you mean?" Rose asked as she turned and gave Jackie and odd look.

"I was going to do shepherds pie," she said. "All of us. A proper sit down, 'cos I'm ready to listen. I wanna learn about you and him and that life you lead. Only, I don't know, he's an alien. For all I know, he eats grass and safety pins and things."

"He'll have shepherd pie," Rose said with a small chuckle as she sat back into the chair. "You're going to cook for him?"

"What's wrong with that?" Jackie asked

"He's finally met his match," Rose teased.

"You're not too old for a slap, you know," Jackie said. "You can go and visit your Gran tomorrow. You'd better learn some French. I told her you were in France. I said you were au-pairing." Rose's phone rang, she looked at the number and it said TARDIS. She smiled.

"Hello?" she asked.

"Right, I'll be a couple of hours, then we can go," the Doctor said.

"You've got a phone?" she asked.

"You think I can travel through space and time and I haven't got a phone?" he asked. "Like I said, couple of hours. I've just got to send out this dispersal. There you go. That's canceling out the Slitheen's advert in case any bargain hunters turn up."

"Er, my mum's cooking," she said nervously.

"Good," he said, and she could hear his smile. "Put her on a slow heat and let her simmer."

"She's cooking tea," she said with a smile at his joke. "For us."

"I don't do that," he said.

"She wants to get to know you," she said.

"Tough," he said. "I've got better things to do."

"It's just tea," she said.

"Not to me it isn't," he said.

"She's my mother," she said.

"Well, she's not mine," he said.

"That's not fair," she said.

"Well, you can stay there if you want, but right now there's this plasma storm brewing in the Horsehead Nebula," he said. "Fires are burning ten million miles wide. Hurtle right across the sky and end up anywhere. Your choice." He hung up. She looked at the phone for a second then ran to her room and started to pack a bag.

"Rose, I was thinking," Jackie said. "I've got that bottle of Amaretto from New Year's Eve. Does he drink? I was wondering whether he drinks or not."

"Yeah, he does," Rose said as she finished packing.

"Don't go, sweetheart," Jackie begged as Rose pulled the bag up and carried it out of the room. "Please don't go." They walked out of the apartment. They got to the TARDIS. "I'll get a proper job. I'll work weekends. I'll pass my test, and if Jim comes round again, I'll say no. I really will."

"I'm not leaving because of you," Rose said. "I told you last night why, but I'll come back."

"But it's not safe," Jackie said.

"Mum," Rose said, that one word spoke volumes to Jackie. Rose put the bag into the Doctor's arm.

"Got enough stuff?" he asked.

"Last time I stepped in there, it was spur of the moment," she said with a smile. "Now I'm signing up. You're stuck with me." She moved to Mickey.

"Come with us," she said. "I could really use my best friend. There's plenty of room."

"No chance," the Doctor said. "He's a liability, I'm not having him on board."

"We'd be dead without him," she said.

"My decision is final," he said.

"Sorry," she said. Mickey straightened up and hugged her goodbye.

"Good luck, yeah," he said.

"You still can't promise me," Jackie said as she approached the Doctor. "What if she gets lost? What if something happens to you, Doctor, and she's left all alone standing on some moon a million light years away. How long do I wait then?"

"Mum, you're forgetting," Rose said as she walked over to Jackie. "It's a time machine. I could go traveling around suns and planets and all the way out to the edge of the universe, and by the time I get back, yeah, ten minutes would have passed. Just ten minutes. So stop worrying. See you in ten minutes' time, yeah?" Rose hugged Jackie and Rose waved to Mickey then got in the TARDIS with the Doctor. He pulled a lever on the console and the TARDIS made it's usual noise, signaling that they had left.

"Medical Bay, now," he said. It was not so much a command but a firm statement.

* * *

**Notes: Chapter 2! Woot!. I know I said I wasn't going to do much rewrites but I felt this one was important. Well Thank you all for Reading and Reviewing. Oh, and if anyone wants the Kiwaka language messaged to them let me know and once I'm done righting it out I will give it to ya so you don't have to keep referencing this chapter.**** TTFN! **


	3. Q&A

Chapter 3

Q &amp; A

By: Izzy

"Medical Bay, now," he said. It was not so much a command but a firm statement. She nodded and made her way to the Med Bay. Once there he helped her up onto the examination table.

"Thanks," she said.

"I need you to take off all your jewelry," he said. She removed her hoop earrings, rings, and watch. "All of it."

"I did," she said. "All I have is my rings, earrings and watch,"

"And the locket?" he asked.

"What?" she asked as she looked down and saw it. He knew the look on her face, as she looked at the locket, she couldn't really see it. Which only meant one thing, a perception filter.

"Where'd you get that locket?" he asked.

"Mum said it's was found with me," she said.

"Let me see it," he said. She took it off and put it in his hand. He looked it over. "It has a perception filter on it. But it seems to only effect you." He turned it over in his hand and saw something carved in Gallifreian it said; 'To my Rose, love Dad.' "This is Gallifreian technology."

"Gallifreian?" she asked. "You mean it's from the home of the Time Lords?"

"Wait," he said surprised. "I never told you the name of my planet. How did you know?"

"My dreams," she said. "They are about a woman, her name is Crimson." She paused for a moment to gather the courage to tell him. She took a deep breath then continued. "At first I was only having them once a year and I couldn't remember any of them. Then I met you." He gave her a strange look. "The first day I slept on the TARDIS I remembered the dream I had. Now I remember every dream I have, but I still can't remember the dreams before we met."

"The Slitheen called you a Kiwaka," he said.

"That's what she is or was," she said. "Well half Kiwaka, half Time Lady." He stood with a look of shock on his face. "What?" He mumbled to himself for a minute as if he was fighting with himself about something. "What is it, Heuca?"

"You're Crimson," he said. She looked at him in shock.

"No, no, no, no," she said. "I'm human!" She shook her head. "No!" She got off the table and moved away from him. "I can't be! I'm human!" She cried. He approached her and she backed herself into a wall. Seeing how scared she was, he stepped back. "How can I be her? I'm human!"

"This locket is a piece of Time Lord technology, called Chameleon Arch," he explained as he held the locket up. She stared at it like it was evil.

"What?" she asked between sobs.

"It changes the biology of one race to another," he said.

"I just wanted to know why I had these dreams so I could stop them," she said as she sank to the floor. "I, I just wanted it to stop." He felt bad, for her. Her world had just been turned on it's axis. He didn't know what to say to her to help. He never had to use the Chameleon Arch, so he really didn't know what she was going through.

"I-" he started but stopped because he knew he was not good in these types of situations, well this him. Before the war he could have told her just what she needed to hear but he was here with her not them. He sighed in frustration. Then a thought came to him, distract her. "Tell me about your dreams."

"I told you they're about a woman named Crimson," she said as she sniffed.

"What happened to her?" he asked.

"Well her parents never married," she said. "But from what I have seen of them, it was a political choice."

"Why do you say that?" he asked as she stood up.

"Well they were in love," she said. "But he lived on a different world than Gallifrey or even Domus. That's the home of the Kiwaka." She slowly stood. Then she walked back to the table and sat back on it. "Though I know it pained him to be away from both Crimson and her mother."

"What was his name?" he asked.

"Drax," she said.

"I knew a Time Lord named Drax," he said. "We went to the Academy together."

"Wow," she said. "Small universe." They chuckled. "He loved her so much. He died when she was five. She was so smart at five, she could speak both languages fluently." She had stopped crying and actually smiled as she remembered some her last dream. "She had a best friend. He was part of the Pīpuru tribe. They are a race of animal human hybrids, well not really. That is just how they looked. But he was part of a blood line that could transform into the animal they had the traits of. He was a wolf." She frowned. "But he was the last of his bloodline. Cybermen killed most of his tribe. And if it wasn't for her uncle, he would have been the last of his race." He frowned, because he knew that feeling all too well.

"How did Drax die?" he asked out of curiosity. "You never said."

"Atrios, was destroyed by Daleks," she said sadly. He looked down and away so she couldn't see his pain. "A deep seeded hatred for Daleks formed in her heart that day. Her mother begged her not to hate them, but she couldn't help it. She hated them in secret. She shallowed it down and let it fester." He turned to her so she could see the pain was in his eyes, but there was something else there too. Understanding. He understood what she had said about Crimson's hatred of Daleks. Silence fell between them for a long while. A pain filled silence.

"So, I'm Crimson?" she asked nervously breaking the silence. He nodded. "Well the language that we talked about yesterday was the Kiwaka language. I'm sorry I lied. I just wanted to see if you knew it."

"I didn't know it," he said sadly.

"What do you think I should do?" she asked.

"I don't know," he said honestly. Silence fell between them, neither looking at the other. "It's your decision." He handed the locket back to her. She took it and they left the room together. "You don't have to decide right away." She nodded.

"Let's go somewhere," she said as she put the locket back on.

"Yeah," he said, he sounded sad and relieved at the same time.

They came in after the adventure with a new companion with them named Adam. He was a charming man, that Rose had taking a liking to. Though something in the back of her mind was yelled at her to throw the man out and airlock or something to that effect. She helped him get settled into a room, then she retired to hers and thoughts of the day pored into her head.

When she met the Dalek face to face, she honestly pitied it. Then it revived and the rage that was deep inside surfaced again. She ran from the Dalek, she didn't like the feeling she got, when she was near it. She rolled over in her bed and sigh as she slumped on her bed. The Dalek chased her but when it didn't kill her and she spoke to it, she felt only pity again. Then the conversation with the Doctor.

"Get out of the way," he said his voice unsteady. "Rose, get out of the way now!" She turned to see him with a gun pointed dead at her.

"No," she said. "I won't let you do this."

"That thing killed hundreds of people," he said.

"Yes," she said. "It killed my father. Well Crimson's father."

"See!" he exclaimed.

"But it's not the one pointing the gun at me," she said.

"I've got to do this," he said. "I've got to end it. The Daleks destroyed my home, my people. I've got nothing left."

"Look at it," she said as she stepped aside.

"What's it doing?" he asked as he lowered the gun.

"It's the sunlight, that's all it wants," she said.

"But it can't," he started.

"It couldn't kill Van Statten, it couldn't kill me," she said. "It's changing. What about you, Doctor? What the hell are you changing into?" After the words left her lips she felt a stab in her heart.

"I couldn't," he started but stopped. "I wasn't. Oh, Rose. They're all dead."

"Why do we survive?" the Dalek asked.

"I don't know," he said honestly.

"I am the last of the Daleks," it said.

"You're not even that," he said. "Rose did more than regenerate you. You've absorbed her DNA. You're mutating."

"Into what?" it asked.

"Something new," he said. "I'm sorry."

"Isn't that better?" she asked.

"Not for a Dalek," he said.

"I can feel so many ideas," it said. "So much darkness. Rose, give me orders. Order me to die."

"I-" she started but couldn't finish because her emotions were a mess. Well not all of them were hers, most were Crimson's.

"This is not life," it said. "This is sickness. I shall not be like you. Order my destruction! Obey! Obey! Obey!" Suddenly everything became clear in her head. This Dalek wanted to die. No, needed to die, and she was the only one who could.

"Do it," she said. The only one. In the back of her mind she heard 'Grim Reaper.' Was that what Crimson is? Was she the Grim Reaper? Death incarnate? Was that what she was to become? A killer?

"Are you frightened, Rose Tyler?" it asked.

"Yeah," she said. _Of myself. _ But she left the second part unsaid. Because she was afraid of Crimson.

"So am I. Exterminate," it said as it killed itself. But that wasn't the only talk with the Doctor that weighted heavier on her mind. Later when they got back to the TARDIS, they talked again.

"A little piece of home," he said as he patted the TARDIS. "Better than nothing."

"Is that the end of it, the Time War?" she asked.

"I'm the only one left," he said grimmly. "I win. How about that?"

"The Dalek survived," she said. "And I survived, maybe other did too."

"I'd know," he said as he tapped his head lightly. "In here. Feels like there's no one."

"Do you want me to go back to being Crimson?" she asked.

"I don't know," he said. "I never met her, I don't know what she's like."

"Smart," she said. "Kind, protective, a little angry like you." He laughed lightly. "She is wonderful, I'd like her as a friend." _And frighting._

"If she is so good why don't you become her again?" he asked.

"I don't know," she lied. "Maybe I'm selfish." She knew why, she was afraid. Well terrified is more like it.

"You?" he asked. "Never."

She rolled over in her bed and sighed again looking at the locket, she could see it again because on the trip he turned off the perception filter so she could make the choice on her own. She was leaning against it but she still needed more information first. Maybe if she slept one more time she could have another dream that would help her choose.

* * *

Fenrir and Crimson laid together in the grass on Gallifrey, looking up at the sky. "This was your father's planet?" he asked.

"Yes," she said.

"It's beautiful," he said. "Thank you."

"For what?" she asked as she rolled over and looked at him.

"Sharing this with me," he said. She rolled back over to look at the sky again.

"I thought maybe seeing this sky would help," she said.

"It has," he said. "I love it. You're my best friend, you know that right?"

"And you mine," she said.

"No," he said. "I mean it! You are the best friend anyone could ever have."

"I'm not that great," she said sadly. "I have rage and hate."

"That you are in full control of," he said.

"I can feel it," she said.

"Well of course you can," he said.

"No," she said softly. "I feel a war on the horizon." She sighed. "Your tribe was just the beginning of something horrible. And I can feel it."

"You are my best friend," he said. "I will fight and die for you, not because you're my princess, but because you're my best friend." She looked at him with tears in her eyes. "I mean it. I love you."

"You're the first person to tell me that in a very long time," she her voice cracked as she spoke. "My father was the last one to say that to me."

"I love you," he repeated as he looked her in the eyes. "You're my best friend and sister."

"Oh, Fenrir," she said. "Lilica!" She tackled him and hugged him tightly. (Lilica means I love you but is only said to family)

"Phifa meckica!" He declared. "Lilica!" (Phifa means together and meckica means forever)

"Come on," he said as he pulled her to stand. "Let's go save the universe!"

* * *

Rose woke up crying tears of happiness. "Oh, Crimson," she said. "You were a good person." She took off the locket and stared at it. "Maybe I should." She heard the TARDIS land so she stood up, changed clothes, refreshed her make-up, and ran out the door, leaving the locket behind on the nightstand. She found Adam and the Doctor in the console room. The Doctor motioned for her to follow him, she did. They walked out on to a space ship or station, she couldn't tell.

Several hours later they dropped off Adam at his home with a chip in his head and Rose feeling like she let the Doctor down. They stood in the console room not saying a word. She wanted to say she was sorry. She wanted to break the silence but she didn't have the courage. She decided that since she couldn't say anything to him that she shouldn't be in the console room so she turned and started to walk toward the hall. He grabbed her hand. She turned back to look at him. That's when she saw it again. Love. "Have you made up your mind?" he asked nervously.

"No," she said. "I know she was a good person but I don't want to just let her swan in and take over my life." She searched his face for a reaction to what she said and she found it. Relief and a bit hurt too. "What do you want?" He didn't say anything he just let go of her, walked back to the console and started to work on a random part of the TARDIS, which honestly didn't need fixed. She sighed and went back to her bedroom. Once inside she closed the door and leaned against it. Suddenly she burst into tears and slid down the door. She wrapped her arms around her legs and put her head on her knees as she wept.

* * *

"Another successful mission!" Fenrir exclaimed as he and Crimson toasted to their success.

"Hena, hena!" she exclaimed as they took a swig of their drinks. (Hena means hear)

"I think this calls for a song!" He exclaimed.

"Maki," she said. "But what song?" He pondered for a bit then a mischievous grin appeared on his face. He moved to the stage and began to sing, Kansas, Carry On Wayward Son. She listened as he sang with great entrust she had never heard such a song, she loved it. She had only heard songs from her planet and the lullabies her father sang to her as a small child. She drank the rest of her drink. (Maki means definitely)

* * *

Rose woke up when she heard a knock at her door. She wiped her eyes, stood and opened the door. "Yes?" she asked as she opened the door.

"I thought I'd ask where you want to go next," he said. "But if this is a bad time."

"No," she said. "It's – it's fine." She wiped her eyes again. "I'll be in the console room in a minute."

"Take you're time," he said as he walked back to the console room. She closed the door and leaned against it again. She stood there for a bit, trying to decide where they should good and only one place came to mind. When she was abandoned, by her birth mother. Well why she was left at the orphanage by Crimson's mother. She had to know, she felt it would help her make a decision. She straighted herself in the mirror and swiftly walked to the console room.

"I want to see why I was abandoned," she said as she entered the console room.

"Where's this come from, all of a sudden?" he asked.

"All right then," she said as she leaned against the console. "If we can't, if it goes against the laws of times or something, then never mind, just leave it."

"No," he said as he folded his arms over his chest. "I can do anything. I'm just more worried about you."

"I need to know," she said. "I think it will help me choose."

"Your wish is my command," he said. "But be careful what you wish for." He danced around the console, flipping levers and twisting dials. "October 5th 1987?"

"Yes," she said. He pulled another lever and the TARDIS groaned and shook. She ran out the doors into the rain. She saw the orphanage in front of her. The Doctor came out with and umbrella, holding it above her head so she wouldn't get any wetter. Suddenly she saw the queen from her dreams.

"That's Crimson's mother." In the queen's arms was a baby. "There I am." Rose took a step forward.

"Don't go," an American female voice came from behind them. They turned around to see a tall lean woman with short red hair and bright green eyes that couldn't belong to a human. She wore a woman's leather jacket with a spaghetti strap red shirt under it, and a form fitting skirt that showed off her very long legs. She held an umbrella that looked like the same on the Doctor had even down to the question mark handle.

"I can feel you, just who are you?" he asked. "You can't be a Time Lady."

"Can't is such an over used word," she smiled. "I'm a friend. Well I will be. This is your first time meeting me but I have already met you."

"A friend?" Rose asked. "What's your name?"

"Lady," the woman said. "My name is Lady, and I'm a Time Lady from another universe."

"You're lying!" he shouted. "There are no other Time Lords in any other universe!"

"Look at this," she said as she approached them pulling a picture out of the breast pocket of her coat. Rose took the picture. It was of the Doctor, Rose and another woman, the three of them were smiling but the look on the Doctor's face in the picture was towards the other woman not Rose. It was a look of pure love and admiration. "That's me in my first regeneration. The three of us were great. My Rose is my best friend, and my Doctor is my bondmate. I promise I would never mislead you." Rose handed back the picture. "I'm from another version of this universe. But I met my Doctor when the Earth ended."

"You survived the Time War," he said with a glimmer of hope in his voice.

"No," Lady said. "I was human, until I met my Doctor. I became a Time Lady."

"How do you become a Time Lady?" Rose asked.

"It's a long story and one I can't tell you until we see each other again," Lady said. "I told you when I met you so, I can't tell you now."

"So we've met before?" Rose asked.

"Not for you," Lady said. "But, I came to tell you why you were abandoned."

"You know?!" Rose asked surprised.

"You told me," Lady said.

"What did I choose?" Rose asked.

"I can't tell you that," Lady said. Before Rose could ask why Lady added. "I can't tell you because you haven't made that decision yet. What I say could change that. It could change your future. And from what I saw of your future you like your future."

"So why?" Rose said as she voice cracked from feeling like she was going to cry.

"Because," Lady said. "Queen Melody, Crimson, well your mother. She wanted you to have a normal life away from the troubles of the Time War. But little did she know the war had been ended by a Time Lord by then. She didn't know because she never went back to check on Gallifrey. She didn't even want to go in the first place, but she felt you were in danger. So she went to the one place that would remind her of of her dead love, the most."

"She loved me?" Rose asked as tears ran down her face.

"Yes," Lady said. "I have never met her, but I'm sure she loves you. As Crimson or Rose." She chuckled. "As I was once told. No matter what form you take you will always be, you." She smiled a sad smile. "My Doctor told me that. He told me that no matter if I'm human or what regeneration I'm on, I'm always me."

"Thank you," Rose said.

"It twas my honor," Lady said with a small bow. "After all you saved my JT." She smiled a sad smile again. "My JT is a trouble maker just like I was when I was young." She laughed. "Only when I was young I didn't have a Vortex Manipulator. But I think I would have been just like him if I did." She gave another small bow. "Well I bid you farewell. I do have a bondmate to get back to, and knowing him he's flipping out. Probably searching the whole of my universe looking for me. After all this isn't the first time I disappeared on him." She turned around and waved as she stepped away.

"Bye," Rose said.

"Come on," he said as he motioned her back into the TARDIS. They went back into the TARDIS. Rose didn't say anything to the Doctor she just went to bed.

* * *

"Mother!" Crimson shouted as she stormed through the halls of her mother's castle. "Mother!" She had an angry look upon her face as she continued her search for her mother. "Mother! If you do not come and face me I will tare this place down piece by piece!" She found herself in the throne room where Queen Melody sat upon a throne.

"What have I told you, about storming through the castle screaming your head off?" Queen Melody said.

"What is the meaning of this?!" Crimson yelled.

"Crimson, I have told you to lower your voice," Queen Melody said.

"Forgive me, my Queen," Crimson said bitterly. "But why have you not sent troops to aid our allies in this war against the Daleks?"

"That is not a war," Queen Melody said bitterly. "It's a slaughter."

"Not if we go help the Time Lords," Crimson urged. "We have to help!"

"No!" Queen Melody said firmly. "My sisters and I, have spoken."

"But Mother!" Crimson tried again. "At least send me-" She stopped talking when Queen Melody stood up and glared at Crimson.

"Crimson Rose Moon, I forbid you and any other Kiwaka from helping the Time Lords!" Queen Melody bellowed. "Do I make myself perfectly clear?"

"Crystal," Crimson said sadly. She stormed out of the throne room and back to her own room. She flopped down on her bed and huffed. "Why can't I get her to see?"

"Perhaps you are going about it wrong?" Shadow asked as he walked into her room.

"Uncle Shadow!" she exclaimed happily as she jumped into his arms. "Is Aunt Ash with you?"

"No," he said. "She is against the war too." She pulled away. "I will be fighting."

"But if Aunt Ash is against it-" she started but was cut off by a large finger being pressed to her lips.

"I'm going as King of the Shadō shurui," he said. She looked as if she were going to cry. "Come on now, warriors don't cry." He pulled her tiny frame into a tight hug. "Go speak to Fenrir. He has a plan to get the Queens to see that the war is unavoidable." She sniffed.

"OK, Uncle Shadow," she said as he put her back down.

"Your father would be so proud of you," he said before he bent down and walked back out of her room. Her thoughts drifted to what she could remember about her father, he had died when she was only a child. He was a Time Lord. Not a very strong or important one, but a Time Lord none the less. Which is one of the reasons she couldn't understand her mother's stand on the future of Gallifrey. That planet was her father's home. The treaty between the two races was her father's doing. She knew her mother still loved her father, she often found her mother in the Type 40 he loved so much.

She knew her father would want her to help his Time Lord brothers and sisters. He was a good man. She formed a plan in her head. She would steal her father's Type 40 and go to Gallifrey on her own. Even if she was stripped of her title and name she would defend her father's people. But without her name she could do very little. So if she wanted to make it to Gallifrey without being stripped of her name she would have to steal her father's Type 40.

She grabbed her scythe, walked out her door and locked the door behind her. She took a deep breath and held on to her scythe as if it would give her strength. It seemed to work because she walked to her mother's room and slowly opened the door. She looked around to make sure her mother hadn't returned. The room was empty aside from the furniture and marble pillar that didn't belong in the room. She moved to her mother's dresser and opened the top drawer then reached in to get the key. The key was in a secret compartment. She got the key then ran to the pillar where she put the key in and a door swung open. She smiled at the familiar hum of the old Type 40. She could remember her father working on it as she would color pictures for him.

She sighed trying to push the memories of her father aside so she could do what she had to do. She had read the manual for the Type 40 so many times she could fly it in her sleep. She flipped the switches and pulled levers. The ship moaned and groaned from not being used in hundreds of years. But she knew this was the best thing for the universe. She had to help the Time Lords, her father's people. No, not her father's people, her people. She gripped the scythe tightly. She parked the Type 40 perfectly. She got out of it and reported to the commanding officer. They sent her to the front lines.

She fought for years. She killed many Daleks and helped as many Gallifreians as she could. She was getting so tired of the bloodshed on both sides. So she would sing songs from her home at night, the children loved to gather around her as she sang. She missed home. She was a warrior, but she was also a princess. She wanted a warm bed, and a proper shower. But she had the resolve to finish this. She would help end this. Even if she had to use her power to erase the Daleks from the universe forever. She knew the Queens would frown about that and really strip her of her name and title. She frowned at the thought of her mother. Even if they had a difference in opinion about the Time War, she still missed her mother.

"Ma'am," a solider approached her.

"Report," she commanded. She had gained the rank of Major in the short time she had been fighting.

"Major, we have reports that say: the Daleks are advancing on Arcadia," he said. "We are to report there immediately."

"Send a message back, we are on our way!" she announced as she stood grabbing her scythe as she stood. In this war the Daleks had dubbed her the Grim Reaper. She laughed when a Time Lord told her what they meant by that. And she had told them that if that's what it took to end the war, she would be their Grim Reaper.

The march to Arcadia was a long one, but her troops were just as determined as she was. That was her terms when she accepted the rank of Major, she wanted to lead a crew that was just as determined as she was. By the time they reached Arcadia the battle was in full swing. She ripped through four Daleks with one swing of her scythe. Her troops fired their blasters at the Daleks. She was mowing down the Daleks like they were weeds in and unruly yard. She commanded her troops to save the civilians as she focused on the Daleks. But as she looked over the battlefield she saw her troops get slaughtered by Dalek reinforcements. She looked at their dead bodies in horror. She lost control, she ran wildly at the Daleks and killed a lot of them but in her rage she didn't watch her back. It was warrior 101. Watch your back. A Dalek came up behind her and shot her through one of her hearts. She was thrown to the ground by the force. She started to regenerate, she knew the Dalek would shoot her again to finish the job but it didn't nothing happened. Even her regeneration stopped. She couldn't move. She wondered if this was what it was like to die. As she lost consciousness she saw the Doctor's TARDIS.

* * *

Rose woke up grasping her heart and panting. She had to go see the Doctor. She knew about the Time War first hand. She ran out of her room, after getting dressed, not even bothering shutting her door. She ran straight to the console room, but as she entered the TARDIS shook. "What's the emergency?" she asked as lights flashed.

"It's mauve," the Doctor said.

"Mauve?" she asked as she tried to make her way to the console to hold on.

"The universally recognized color for danger," he said as he held on to the console.

"What happened to red?" she asked.

"That's just humans," he explained. "By everyone else's standards, red's camp. Oh, the misunderstandings. All those red alerts, all that dancing. It's got a very basic flight computer. I've hacked in, slaved the TARDIS. Where it goes, we go."

"And that's safe, is it?" she asked playfully.

"Totally," he said, as a panel on the console sparked. "Okay, reasonably. Should have said reasonably there. No, no, no, no! It's jumping time tracks, getting away from us."

"What exactly is this thing?" she asked.

"No idea," he said with a smile.

"Then why are we chasing it?" she asked.

"It's mauve and dangerous, and about thirty seconds from the center of London," he explained. Well that meant that the talk would have to wait. She sighed. The TARDIS landed soon after and he popped out and she followed behind. "Do you know how long you can knock around space without happening to bump into Earth?"

"Five days?" she teased. "Or is that just when we're out of milk?"

"Of all the species in all the Universe and it has to come out of a cow," he said. "Must have come down somewhere quite close. Within a mile, anyway. And it can't have been more than a few weeks ago. Maybe a month."

"A month?" she asked surprised. "We were right behind it."

"It was jumping time tracks all over the place," he said. "We're bound to be a little bit out. Do you want to drive?"

"How much is a little?" she asked ignoring his question, because she could if she became Crimson again.

"A bit," he said

"Is that exactly a bit?" Rose asked.

"Ish," he said.

"What's the plan, then?" she asked. "Are you going to do a scan for alien tech or something?"

"Rose, it hit the middle of London with a very loud bang," he said. "I'm going to ask." He showed her his psychic paper.

"'Doctor John Smith, Ministry of Asteroids.'" she read

"It's psychic paper. It tells you-" he started.

"Whatever you want it to tell me, I remember," she interrupted. He walked to the Delivery door in the back of the building they parked near.

"Sorry," he said. Silence fell between them as he removed his Sonic and worked on the door. He looked over at her shirt and noticed that she wearing a Union Jack t-shirt. "Are you sure about that t-shirt?"

"Too early to say," she said looking down at it. "I'm taking it out for a spin."

"Mummy? Mummy?" she heard a small boy say.

"Come on if you're coming," the Doctor said as the door unlocked. "It won't take a minute." He went inside but she wandered toward the noise.

"Mummy?" the boy asked again. As she turned around a corner she finally saw the boy. He was in rags but he wore a gas mask.

"Doctor? Doctor?" she called out. "There's a kid up there! Are you all right up there?

"Mummy?" he asked. She ran up a metal fire escape staircase, until she got to a flat roof, but he was still higher up.

"Mummy?" he asked.

"Okay, hang on," she said. "Don't move!" She saw a rope dangle in front of her so she grabbed it and gave it a good tug to see if it would hold. It seemed secure. She started to climb the rope.

"Mummy. Balloon!" he shouted. The barrage balloon drifted, pulling Rose away from the wall and the child, and dangling her over the alleyway.

"Doctor!" she yelled as loud as she could. "Doctor! Doctor!" Searchlight combed the sky. Explosions and fires started in various parts of London. A squadron of German planes flew over her head. "Okay, maybe not this t-shirt." A few minutes later she was high over Westminster, and her grip finally slid. She fell down as she fell she screamed loudly. She was surprised when a beam caught her.

"Okay, okay, I've got you," a man said.

"Who's got me!?" she yelled. "Who's got me, and you know, how?!"

"I'm just programming your descent pattern," he said. "Keep as still as you can and keep your hands and feet inside the light field."

"Descent pattern?" she asked.

"Oh, and could you switch off your cell phone?" he asked. She scoffed. "No, seriously, it interferes with my instrument."

"You know, no one ever believes that!" she exclaimed as she pulled her cell phone out of her pocket and turned it off.

"Thank you," he said. "That's much better."

"Oh, yeah, that's a real load off, that is," she said bitterly. "I'm hanging in the sky in the middle of a German air raid with the Union Jack across my chest, but hey, my mobile phone's off."

"Be with you in a moment." he said. She hung there for a bit. She felt anger build in her as she waited. She wondered if it was because of Crimson or if she was truly angry. "Hold tight!" Broke her out of her thoughts.

"To what?" she asked.

"Fair point," he said. She started to move down the beam but then was teleported into the ship, straight into the man's arms. He was handsome. Nothing on the Doctor but still handsome in his own right. "I've got you. You're fine, you're just fine. The tractor beam, it can scramble your head just a little."

"Hello," she said sounding light headed.

"Hello," he said. She noticed that he was American.

"Hello," she repeated. "Sorry, that was hello twice there. Dull, but you know, thorough."

"Are you all right?" he asked with great concern.

"Fine," she said as she pushed away lightly. He let her go a bit but kept his hands around her so if she fainted he could catch her.

"Why, are you expecting me to faint or something?" she asked as she stumbled and he moved to catch her but she caught herself.

"You look a little dizzy," he said.

"What about you?" she asked. "You're not even in focus." She fainted and he caught her. He smiled at her and put her in a nearby bunk. She woke up with a groan.

"Better now?" he asked.

"You got lights in here?" she asked. Then she realized that she slept without dreaming. That didn't set well with her. He turned on the lights to reveal a cramped spaceship with bundles of wires hanging from the ceiling.

"Hello," he said with a smile.

"Hello," she responded.

"Hello," he repeated.

"Let's not start that again," she said.

"Okay," he said.

"So, who're you supposed to be, then?" she asked noticing his attire. He was wearing a American solider uniform.

"Captain Jack Harkness," he said. "One Three Three Squadron, Royal Air Force. American volunteer." He handed her a piece of paper.

"Liar," she said with a smile. "This is psychic paper. It tells me whatever you want it to tell me."

"How do you know?" he asked.

"Two things," she said. "One, I have a friend who uses this all the time."

"Ah." he said

"And two, you just handed me a piece of paper telling me you're single and you work out," she said with a cheeky grin.

"Tricky thing, psychic paper," he said.

"Yeah," she said. "Can't let your mind wander when you're handing it over," She couldn't help thinking that this man would be perfect for Crimson's friend Fenrir, as she handed it back.

"Who's Crimson and Fenrir?" he asked.

"Well it's complicated," she said.

"I don't do complicated," he said. "But if they're as cute as you I could make and exception."

"Shall we try and get along without the psychic paper?" she asked.

"That would be better, wouldn't it?" he asked.

"Nice spaceship," she said.

"Gets me around." he replied with a shrug.

"Very Star Trek," she said.

"What?" he asked.

"Guessing you're not a local boy, then." she said with a smile.

"A cell phone, a liquid crystal watch, and fabrics that won't be around for at least another two decades," he said. "Guessing you're not a local girl."

"Guessing right." she said as she took a look outside of the window. She leaned on the window seal and removed her hands quickly.

"Burn your hands on the rope?" he asked.

"Yeah." she said as she looked at her hands. "We're parked in midair! Can't anyone down there see us?"

"No," he said. "Can I have a look at your hands for a moment?"

"Why?" she asked not fully trusting him yet.

"Please?" he asked again. She sighed in annoyance but lifted her hands and showed him her palms where it was burnt. "You can stop acting now.. I know exactly who you are. I can spot a Time Agent a mile away."

"Time Agent?" she asked as he looked the burn over.

"I've been expecting one of you guys to show up," he said. "Though not, I must say, by barrage balloon. Do you often travel that way?"

"Sometimes I get swept off my feet," she said but quickly added, "By balloons." He wrapped his scarf around her wrists. "What are you doing?"

"Try to keep still,"he said as he pushed a button that caused miroscoopic glowing things to buzz around her hands healing the burns. "Nanogenes. Sub-atomic robots. The air in here is full of them. They just repaired three layers of your skin." The glow faded, so he untied her wrist.

"Well, tell them thanks," she said with a small laugh.

"Shall we get down to business?" he asked.

"Business?" she asked.

"Shall we have a drink on the balcony?" he said as he opened the latch and climbed out with a bottle of champagne in hand. "Bring up the glasses." She followed him with the glasses in hand and was amazed by what she saw. Fires and searchlights covering London, nearly lighting up the sky. Then she looked down to see that she was standing on something, she didn't see anything. To her surprise that didn't scare her like she thought it should.

"Okay, you have an invisible spaceship," she said.

"Yeah," he said.

"Tethered up to Big Ben for some reason," she said.

"First rule of active camouflage," he said.

"Park somewhere you'll remember," they said at the same time.

"How'd you know?" he asked.

"I don't know," she said honestly. He gave her a weird look, but decided to drop it because he started to pore the champagne. "You know, it's getting a bit late. I should really be getting back."

"We're discussing business." he said as he handed her a glass.

"This isn't business," she said. "This is champagne."

"I try never to discuss business with a clear head," he said. "Are you travelling alone? Are you authorized to negotiate with me?"

"What would we be negotiating?" she asked.

"I have something for the Time Agency," he said. "Something they'd like to buy. Are you in power to make payment?"

"Well, I, I should talk to my companion," she said.

"Companion?" he asked.

"I should really be getting back to him," she said as she stood.

"Him?" he asked.

"Do you have the time?" she asked. He pulled out a remote and Big Ben lit up just as it struck nine thirty. "Okay, that was flash. That was on the flash side."

"So when you say your companion, just how disappointed should I be?" he asked as he stood up too.

As he approached her, she could feel something inside her scream '_No! Get him away!_'.

"Okay, we're standing in midair," she said. The voice got louder as he got closer.

"Mmm-hmm," he said.

"On a spaceship, during a German air raid," she said. "Do you really think now's a good time to be coming on to me?"

"Perhaps not," he said as he backed away. The voice calmed and she sighed. "Do you like Glenn Miller?" He used his remote again and Moonlight Serenade began to play. He tries to take her hand but she pulls away.

"I don't dance," he said hurriedly.

"It's 1941, the height of the London Blitz, the height of the German bombing campaign, and something else has fallen on London," he explains. "A fully equipped Chula warship. The last one in existence, armed to the teeth. And I know where it is, because I parked it. If the Agency can name the right price, I can get it for you. But in two hours, a German bomb is going to fall on it and destroy it forever. That's your deadline. That's the deal. Now, shall we discuss payment? Two hours, the bomb falls. There'll be nothing left but dust and a crater."

"You used to be a Time Agent, now you're some kind of freelancer,"she said.

"Well, that's a little harsh," he said. "I like to think of myself as a criminal."

"I bet you do," she teased then the voice screamed again.

"So, this companion of yours, does he handle the business?" he asked.

"Well, I delegate a lot of that, yeah," she said.

"Well, maybe we should go find him," he said.

"And how're you going to do that?" she asked.

"Easy," he said. "I'll do a scan for alien tech."

* * *

Meanwhile the Doctor had met Nancy and the gas mask child, in his search for Rose. He followed Nancy from the house she had raided for the homeless children of London. He found her at a little shack not far from the house. She was putting away the things she had gotten from the house into a safe place. He stood behind her, so when she spun around it frightened her. "How'd you follow me here?" she aksed.

"I'm good at following, me," he said with a smile. "Got the nose for it."

"People can't usually follow me if I don't want them to," she said. "Only Fenrir can do that."

"My nose has special powers," he said.

"Yeah? That's why it's-" she started but started to laugh to hard to continue.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"What?"

"Nothing." she laughed. "Do your ears have special powers too?"

"What are you trying to say?" he asked sounding slightly hurt.

"Goodnight, Mister." she said.

"Nancy," a male voice sad from on top of the shack. With it being so dark the Doctor couldn't make out who or what the figure was. But it jumped and spun in the air landing a few feet from the Doctor. "Is this man giving you any trouble?"

"No, Fenrir," she said with a smile. "He was just leaving."

"Nancy, there's something chasing you and the other kids," the Doctor said. "Looks like a boy and it isn't a boy, and it started about a month ago, right? The thing I'm looking for, the thing that fell from the sky, that's when it landed. And you know what I'm talking about, don't you?"

"He saw Jamie?" the man called Fenrir asked. She nodded to him.

"There was a bomb." she explained. "A bomb that wasn't a bomb. Fell the other end of Limehouse Green Station."

"Take me there." the Doctor said.

"There's soldiers guarding it. Barbed wire. You'll never get through." she said.

"Try me." he said.

"If he's hell bent on going I'll take him," Fenrir said.

"Be careful," she said. "And don't forget to-"

"Don't worry," Fenrir said with a tooth grin. "I'll take him to the Doctor first." Even though it was so dark, the Doctor could see that the man had fangs where his K-9s were. "Come on." Fenrir lead the Doctor down to the station. "Before we go in there. I need to ask you something."

"What?" the Doctor asked.

"You're a Time Lord," Fenrir said. "Did you fight in the Time War?" The Doctor's face went dark with a mix of pain, anger, and self loathing. "I'll take that as a yes. But what I really want to ask is, did anyone else survive? Maybe a girl with long ginger hair?"

"I'm the last of the Time Lords," the Doctor said grimly.

"I feared that was true," Fenrir said sadly. "Anyway, this way." The Doctor used super-binoculars to scan the area. "The bomb's under that tarpaulin. They put the fence up over night. See the hospital?"

"What about it?" the Doctor asked.

"That's where we go next," Fenrir said as he walked down the stairs.

"For now," the Doctor said. "I'm more interested in getting in there." He pointed at the bomb.

"We have to talk to the doctor first," Fenrir said.

"Why?" the Doctor asked.

"Because there was someone that was hurt the night that bomb fell and he was taken there," Fenrir explained. The Doctor shrugged and followed Fenrir to the hospital. The Doctor used his Sonic to open the padlock on the ornate metal gates to the hospital grounds. Inside the long, dark wards, every bed has a very still patient in it, and they are all wearing gas masks. An elderly, grumpy doctor came out from his office.

"You'll find them everywhere," he said. "In every bed, in every ward. Hundreds of them." He coughed.

"Yes, I saw," the Doctor said. "Why are they still wearing gas masks?"

"They're not," the man said. "Fenrir, who's this?"

"He was asking about the bomb," Fenrir said.

"Doctor Constantine," the man said as he coughed. "What do you know about it?"

"Only what Fenrir told me," the Doctor said. "Why I was asking. What do you know?"

"Only what it's done." Constantine said.

"These people, they were all caught up in the blast?" the Doctor asked.

"None of them were," Constantine said with a chuckle then a cough. He sat down in a chair. The Doctor noticed that Fenrir looked at Constantine with a great deal of concern but made not move to help the elderly man.

"You're very sick," the Doctor said.

"Dying, I should think," Constantine said. "I just haven't been able to find the time. Are you a doctor?"

"I have my moments," the Doctor said. Fenrir huffed at that answer. Because it reminded him of how Crimson would answer most questions about jobs.

"Have you examined any of them yet?" Constantine asked.

"No." the Doctor replied.

"Don't touch the flesh." Constantine said.

"Which one?" the Doctor asked.

"Any one," Constantine replied. The Doctor took his Sonic and ran it over the nearest patient. He was confused by what the scan said. "Conclusions?"  
"Massive head trauma, mostly to the left side," the Doctor replied. "Partial collapse of the chest cavity, mostly to the right. There's some scarring on the back of the hand and the gas mask seems to be fused to the flesh, but I can't see any burns."

"Examine another one." Constantine said. The Doctor went to the next one and used the Sonic to scan them.

"This isn't possible." he said.

"Examine another." Constantine said. The Doctor did and got the same results.

"This isn't possible." he said as he scanned one after the other.

"No." Constantine said.

"They've all got the same injuries." the Doctor concluded.

"Yes." Constantine confirmed.

"Exactly the same." Fenrir added as the Doctor stopped.

"Yes." Constantine repeated.

"Identical, all of them, right down to the scar on the back of the hand." the Doctor said. "How did this happen? How did it start?"

"With the boy that was brought in," Fenrir said.

"Dead?" the Doctor asked.

"At first." Constantine said. "His injuries were truly dreadful. By the following morning, every doctor and nurse who had treated him, who had touched him, had those exact same injuries. By the morning after that, every patient in the same ward, the exact same injuries. Within a week, the entire hospital. Physical injuries as plague. Can you explain that? What would you say was the cause of death?"

"The head trauma."

"No."

"Asphyxiation.:"

"No."

"The collapse of the chest cavity"

"No."

"All right. What was the cause of death?" the Doctor asked.

"There wasn't one. They're not dead." Fenrir said. The Doctor gave Fenrir a strange look. Constantine hit the trash can with his cane. All the patients sat up at once. The Doctor jumped back from the beds and looked like he was ready to fight.

"It's all right." Constantine said. "They're harmless. They just sort of sit there. No heartbeat, no life signs of any kind. They just don't die."

"And they've just been left here? Nobody's doing anything?" the Doctor asked as the patients lay back again.

"I try and make them comfortable. What else is there?" Constantine asked sounding hopeless.

"Just you?" the Doctor asked. "You're the only one here?"

"I help when I can," Fenrir said.

"Before this war began," Constantine said sadly. "I was a father and a grandfather. Now I am neither. But I'm still a doctor."

"Yeah. I know the feeling." the Doctor said. Fenrir gave the Doctor a sympathetic look.

"I suspect the plan is to blow up the hospital and blame it on a German bomb." Constantine said.

"Probably too late." the Doctor said.

"No." Constantine said hurriedly. "There are isolated cases. Isolated cases breaking out all over London. Stay back, stay back. Listen to me. Top floor. Room eight oh two. That's where they took the first victim, the one from the crash site. And you must find Nancy again."

"Nancy?" the Doctor asked.

"It was her brother." Constantine said. "She knows more than she's saying. She won't tell me, but she might Mummy. Are you my mummy?" Starting with the mouth his face changed into a gas mask.

"Hello?" Jack's voice came from the other room.

"Hello?" Rose's voice followed.

"Friends of yours?" Fenrir asked. The Doctor ignored Fenrir and went to where he heard Jack and Rose.

"Hello?" Jack asked once more before the Doctor entered the hallway. The Doctor entered the hallway and gave Jack a dirty look. "Good evening. Hope we're not interrupting. Jack Harkness. I've been hearing all about you on the way over."

"He knows." Rose said. "I had to tell him about us being Time Agents."

"And it's a real pleasure to meet you, Doctor," Jack said as he shook the Doctor's hand. Jack entered the ward.

"Where've you been?" the Doctor asked. "We're in the middle of a London Blitz. It's not a good time for a stroll."

"Who's strolling?" she teased. "I went by barrage balloon. Only way to see an air raid."

"What?!" he exclaimed.

"Listen, what's a Chula warship?" she asked.

"Chula?" he asked as they walked back into the room where Jack was examining the bodies and Fenrir was no were to be seen.

"This just isn't possible. How did this happen?" Jack asked.

"What kind of Chula ship landed here?" the Doctor asked.

"What?" Jack asked.

"He said it was a warship." she said. "He stole it, parked it somewhere out there, somewhere a bomb's going to fall on it unless we make him an offer."

"What kind of warship?" the Doctor asked.

"Does it matter? It's got nothing to do with this." Jack said.

"This started at the bomb site. It's got everything to do with it. What kind of warship?" the Doctor asked forcefully.

"An ambulance! Look." Jack exclaimed as he showed the Doctor a hologram of the Chula ambulance. "That's what you chased through the Time Vortex. It's space junk. I wanted to kid you it was valuable. It's empty. I made sure of it. Nothing but a shell. I threw it at you. Saw your time travel vehicle, love the retro look, by the way, nice panels. Threw you the bait"

"Bait?" she asked.

"I wanted to sell it to you and then destroy it before you found out it was junk." he said with a sigh.

"You said it was a war ship." she said.

"They have ambulances in wars." he protested. "It was a con. I was conning you. That's what I am, I'm a con man. I thought you were Time Agents. You're not, are you."

"Just a couple more freelancers." she said fondly.

"Oh. Should have known." he said throwing his hands up in defeat. "The way you guys are blending in with the local color. I mean, Flag Girl was bad enough, but U-Boat Captain? Anyway, whatever's happening here has got nothing to do with that ship."

"What is happening here, Doctor?" she asked.

"Human DNA is being rewritten by an idiot." the Doctor said with a cold edge to his voice.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"I don't know." he said. "Some kind of virus converting human beings into these things. But why? What's the point?" Suddenly the patients sat up and got out of bed.

"Mummy. Mummy. Mummy? Mummy?" they chanted.

"What's happening?" she asked.

"I don't know." he said as he backed Rose and Jack into the wall.

"Mummy." the patients continued.

"Don't let them touch you." he said.

"What happens if they touch us?" she asked.

"You're looking at it." he said.

"Mummy. Mummy. Mummy. Mummy. Mummy. Mummy." the patients chanted as they got closer.

* * *

Notes: Another chapter! Woot! We are getting closer and closer to merging past with present! Woo, well let me know what you think. Thank you my loyal readers and reviewers!


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